Blow to Chelsea as N'golo Kante Is Among Chelsea Duo to Miss Preseason Tour

• N’golo Kante and Ruben Loftus Cheek will miss Chelsea’s preseason tour in a blow to the Blues
• The pair will not travel with the rest of the squad due to COVID regulations in the United States
• Through the club website, Chelsea revealed it was impossible for the duo to travel because of their Covid-19 vaccination status

Chelsea duo Ruben Loftus-Cheek and N’Golo Kante will not travel with the rest of the squad for pre-season tour, the club has announced.

The announcement was made on Saturday, July 9 as Chelsea revealed the pair would be absent because of their Covid-19 vaccination status.

Thomas Tuchel’s side is preparing for a pre-season tour in the United States, where they will play Club America, Charlotte FC and Arsenal in a series of friendlies.

In the announcement of the travelling squad, there were two notable absentees, including N’golo Kante.

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As per the current entry rules in the United States, only those with an exception or US citizens can enter the country if unvaccinated.

Furthermore, it is impossible to get into the US if one is unvaccinated or has had COVID-19 over the last 12 months.

As reported by Daily Mail, it is still unclear whether Kante and Loftus-Cheek are unvaccinated or simply only had one dose of the vaccine.

The last time Kante tested positive for COVID-19 was in September 2021, and subsequently missed Chelsea’s Champions League game against Juventus.

Having isolated for 10 days at the time, the 31-year old also missed the Premier League clash against Southampton.

Chelsea’s full squad travelling to the US is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Kepa Arrizabalaga, Marcus Bettinelli, Edouard Mendy, Teddy Sharman-Lowe.

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Defenders: Marcos Alonso, Ethan Ampadu, Cesar Azpilicueta, Trevoh Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Levi Colwill, Reece James, Kenedy, Emerson Palmieri, Malang Sarr, Thiago Silva.

Midfielders: Ross Barkley, Conor Gallagher, Billy Gilmour, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount, Harvey Vale.

Forwards: Tino Anjorin, Michy Batshuayi, Kai Havertz, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Christian Pulisic, Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech.

Chelsea also revealed that Armando Broja would link up with the team on tour next week.

Ziyech parts ways with agent

In other news, Sports Brief reported of Hakim Ziyech’s social media announcement that he would be representing himself on matters about his future and transfers.

The Morocco international has been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge in recent weeks, and boss Thomas Tuchel openly expressed his willingness to allow Ziyech to leave in the near future.

The winger stated that he would be taking full control over his own future as far as his football career was concerned, adding that he wanted negotiations to be done through him.