Frank Lampard insists N’Golo Kante is back fit however remains a doubt for Chelsea’s clash with Newcastle United on Saturday evening.
The Blues are in Premier League action at St James’ Park, but the World Cup winner might well miss out again after another hamstring issue.
It has been a frustrating campaign for the 29-year-old, who has made just 12 league starts and another two appearances off the bench.
Kante missed the 3-0 win over Burnley last weekend, having picked up his latest problem in training the day before.
And while he could be back, Lampard might choose to rest the midfielder for the game in the North East, with Arsenal visiting Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night.
“Yes (he is fit), Lampard said. “He’s had a few issues through the week.
“When I say yes I think it’s a decision I have to make with absolute certainty but at the minute it looks like he’s good to go.”
Lampard also stated that Loftus-Cheek should hopefully be back training with the first team after the winter break next month.
The 23-year-old has been out of action since May after rupturing his Achilles’ tendon in a post-season friendly in America.
While Loftus-Cheek has had set-backs throughout the season, the midfielder is getting back to fitness and has been training with the youth teams.
While the imagery of watching Loftus-Cheek train with the U16s might be amusing to many, Lampard insists it has actually been a good way for him to get back to match sharpness.
“It is actually really good for him, it lets him come in at a level but lets him find his feet,” Lampard added.
“And he will be tired because anyone out for that period of time is going to have problems with endurance and physical problems to get full match fitness.
“So that’s a nice process for him and also nice for the U16s to train with Ruben Loftus-Cheek so it’s a bit of a win-win.”
