"Doesn鈥檛 have to hang his head in shame"鈥揅helsea fans salute their 'world-class' player despite disappointing Wolves draw
A section of Chelsea fans on Twitter expressed their admiration for N'Golo Kante despite the goalless Premier League draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Blues were without several first-team players owing to COVID-19 and injuries. But the match went ahead as planned after the Premier League refused to postpone the game.
With a depleted squad, the west London giants failed to put the Wolves' defense to the test. They only got one shot on target in the end. Christian Pulisic squandered a clear-cut opportunity.
Despite this, the game had a few excellent aspects. The Blues haven't maintained a clean sheet in any tournament since a 4-0 victory against Juventus at the end of November.
Thanks for your incredible support in difficult circumstances. 馃挋
#WolChe https://t.co/wf6bFxOpL2
Kante and Mateo Kovacic returned from their respective injuries. The former played for the entire 90 minutes and was outstanding. He won nine of his 11 duels and was perhaps the best performer on the pitch for Chelsea yesterday.
In addition to five take-ons, the Frenchman had two tackles and two interceptions. With his constant forward runs to connect up with the attacking players, he was a standout performer for the Blues.
Some Chelsea supporters were ecstatic with his performance, as corroborated by the following tweets:
@CFCPys @iChelsHQ Only reason why we didn't lose today... he was relentless
Kante was nowhere near 100% fit today, yet still managed to put in an incredible performance. You wouldn鈥檛 have thought he was out for almost a month, simply world class.
@CFCZach Unbelievable player, need to get his contract extended asap. He has many more years in the tank just need to manage his games. Tchouam茅ni being signed would very much help in doing that.
N鈥橤olo Kante vs Wolves :
- 2 Interceptions
- 2 Tackles
- 2 Shots Blocked
- 2 Fouls Won
- 9/10 Ground Duels Won
- 5/6 Dribbles Completed
- 0 Times Dribbled Past
One of few starters who doesn鈥檛 have to hang his head in shame, incredible player. https://t.co/HWtKGb6LtO
Kante been out for how long and drop a 90 min too performance like that.
@eli_helenek No surprise we kept a clean sheet and we didn鈥檛 concede today because of Kante鈥檚 impact on the team
Interesting how a midfield 3 worked better. Saul actually did alright. Kant茅 was his brilliant best. Good to see Kova back. Results aren't good enough though if you think they are you are deluding yourself. That team was good enough to beat Wolves & Everton just so you know.
Kante was very good. One of our few bright spots and my MOTM (of course). Silva also good. But I want to give Saul a special shout out. Completely changed the match and got us on the front foot. I don鈥檛 think he鈥檒l work out long term, but he was very good today. #CFC
Chelsea are further away from the top of the Premier League table after draw with Wolves
Over the course of 90 minutes, Kante showed no symptoms of exhaustion and came close to scoring the game-winning goal.
Conor Coady came up with a fantastic last-ditch tackle to deny the French star a goal-scoring opportunity in the dying embers of the game.
Chelsea have already lost four points in a row after consecutive draws. They are currently six points behind leaders Manchester City, who have won their last eight games on the trot.
Chelsea were also without Timo Werner, Romelu Lukaku and Callum Hudson-Odoi, who have tested positive for COVID-19. It deprived gaffer Thomas Tuchel of attacking options in the game against Wolves.
Brentford will host the Blues in the Carabao Cup quarterfinals on Wednesday. It's unclear whether the game will continue as planned because of the escalating number of coronavirus illnesses within the roster.
Chelsea will then take on Aston Villa at Villa Park on December 26 in the Premier League. They will be hoping to return to winning ways after an array of dismal performances.