Frank Lampard confirmed that it was his decision to send N'Golo Kante back to England but is hoping to have the Chelsea midfielder back with the squad soon.
The 28-year-old World Cup winner has not fully recovered from the knee injury he suffered before the Europa League final back in May.
While Kante has been with the squad through much of the summer, the Frenchman is yet to have any minutes on the pitch in Lampard's four games in charge so far.
Kante was flown home before the 2-1 win over Barcelona, so that he could recover from the injury quicker and continue his rehabilitation back at the training ground.
Of course, Kante is going to be a massive part of Lampard's plans in the future, especially with the Blues taking on Manchester United in the first Premier League game of the season.
And Lampard is hoping to have him back as soon as possible with three pre-season matches left.
"Yeah, he is okay," Lampard said about Kante's condition. "It was a decision that I made because I felt that him being here, with the facilities and the moving, travel etc. that we have been doing, it probably wasn't the most beneficial for him.
"He went back, has had a few days at Cobham, working well, progressing, so hopefully by the time that we get back at the end of the week I will sit down with the doctor to hpoefully know that he will be back with us very soon."
