Chelsea and France midfielder N'Golo Kante is now expected to miss three months of action with a hamstring injury, ruling him out of the World Cup.
The 31-year-old has only managed two appearances for Chelsea this season and hasn't featured since the second Premier League game of the season, a 2-2 draw with Tottenham.
Reports in France had suggested on Thursday morning that Kante had aggravated a hamstring niggle, with Graham Potter subsequently revealing in his press conference that he had suffered a setback in his recovery and was due to see a specialist.
But a new report from The Athletic states that the prognosis is bleak for Kante and he'll likely be sidelined for three months - ruling him out of the World Cup, which starts on November 20.
The Frenchman, a two-time Premier League winner with Leicester and Chelsea, is out of contract at Stamford Bridge next summer and is understood to be keen on extending his deal.
However, Kante has struggled with a number of muscle injuries over the past couple of seasons, and has played just over half of the Premier League minutes available to him since the start of the 2019/20 season.
Potter admitted to the press that the latest setback was 'worrying' and 'not good news' but would not elaborate further on when Kante could return for Chelsea.
Source : 90min