A section of Chelsea fans on Twitter were pleased with the stand-out performance of N’Golo Kante during the goalless Premier League draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Blues were missing several first-team stars due to COVID-19 and injuries, but the match went on as scheduled with the Premier League declining the request for postponement.
With an understrength side, the west London giants struggled to test the Wolves’ defence regularly. They finished with just one shot on target. Christian Pulisic missed a clear-cut chance.
Despite this, there were a few positives from the game. The Blues kept their first clean sheet across all competitions since the 4-0 win over Juventus in the back end of November.
Both Kante and Mateo Kovacic returned from respective injuries. The former played the entire 90 minutes, and was one of the top performers, winning nine of his 11 duels.
The Frenchman also registered two tackles and two interceptions alongside five take-ons. He was a shining light for the Blues with his regular forward runs to link up with the attacking players.
Some Chelsea fans were delighted with his showing, and here are a few reactions on Twitter.
Kante was nowhere near 100% fit today, yet still managed to put in an incredible performance. You wouldn’t have thought he was out for almost a month, simply world class.
— ZΛCH (@CFCZach) December 19, 2021
Unbelievable player, need to get his contract extended asap. He has many more years in the tank just need to manage his games. Tchouaméni being signed would very much help in doing that.
— Blues🇪🇺 (@BluesSW6) December 19, 2021
N’Golo 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 PastOne of few starters who doesn’t have to hang his head in shame, incredible player. pic.twitter.com/HWtKGb6LtO
— Pys (@CFCPys) December 19, 2021
Kante been out for how long and drop a 90 min too performance like that.
— Xavi CFC (@xpCarty) December 19, 2021
No surprise we kept a clean sheet and we didn’t concede today because of Kante’s impact on the team
— Mo (@CFCMo___) December 19, 2021
Interesting how a midfield 3 worked better. Saul actually did alright. Kanté 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.
— Nath (@cfcNath94) December 19, 2021
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’t think he’ll work out long term, but he was very good today. #CFC
— Dennis Brumfield ⭐️⭐️ (@dmbiiwvu) December 19, 2021
Kante faced the Wolves after a four-week absence from competitive football due to a knee injury. He showed no signs of fatigue over 90 minutes, and nearly scored the winning goal.
The £49m-rated star made a run into the box in the dying seconds of the game, but Conor Coady came up with a superb last-ditch tackle to deny a goalscoring opportunity.
Chelsea have now dropped four points with back-to-back draws. They are currently six points adrift of leaders Manchester City, who are on an eight-match winning run.
The Blues have a midweek Carabao Cup quarter-final at Brentford. With the rising coronavirus cases within the squad, it is unclear whether the game will go on as planned.
It was reported on Sunday that they were seven Covid cases in the Chelsea ranks. Hopefully, there are no more positive tests ahead of the London derby on Wednesday.
