Thomas Tuchel has revealed that N'Golo Kante is fully fit ahead of Chelsea's clash against Tottenham, handing the Blues a massive boost as they eye successive wins in north London.
The 30-year-old midfielder suffered a minor injury in the UEFA Super Cup and then aggravated an ankle injury against Liverpool causing the Frenchman to be pulled from proceedings at Anfield by half-time.
Kante will be hoping he can get the blood pumping again for Chelsea after the Blues' dominance at the heart of midfield began to wither in his absence.
Saul Niguez was thrown into the limelight against Aston Villa to plug the Frenchman's void but struggled and couldn't keep his head above the water, reminding fans of the strenuous demands in Kante's role.
The France international will be instrumental to keeping Nuno Espirito Santo's midfield at bay; halting counter-attacks, intercepting Harry Kane's supply, and breaking up possession.
However, Chelsea and Kante face a unique challenge against Tottenham and risk being overrun in midfield due to the north London side's tendency to operate a flat three or diamond midfield under their new ruling.
Chelsea have a wealth of options and tactical avenues to explore with Jorginho, Kante, Mateo Kovacic, and Saul at Tuchel's disposal, and Spurs will likely refer to their bout with Wolves for inspiration.
Espirito Santo has been reluctant to refer back to a 3-4-3 in which he became synonymous with at Molineux, fielding a 4-3-3 against his former side on matchday two of the Premier League.
Wolves fielded a 3-4-3, as Chelsea do under Tuchel, and Spurs walked away 1-0 victors in what could be labelled as Espirito Santo's audition for the London derby.
On the contrary, Chelsea fielded a 3-4-3 versus Manchester City's 4-3-3 in the Champions League final and prevailed by the same margin, highlighting either side's ability to overcome each other's core tactical values.
With Kante back in the fold and in contention for a place in Tuchel's starting eleven, he will need to relive his illustrious man of the match display to bolster the Blues' chances of winning.
Some of the primary factors from Kante's performance versus Pep Guardiola's side was his ability to be astutely aggressive, carry the ball forwards to beat the press, and offload possession at the right times.
Spurs will likely concede possession to the Blues and eye opportunities to counter-attack, much like they did against City, therefore Kante's recovery pace and ability to recycle opposition counter-attacks into Chelsea possession will be instrumental to the midfield battle.
On numerous occasions, Kante was able to fluidly transition defensive phases of play into attacking phases with great intensity, which is something Saul couldn't acclimatise to on his Premier League debut.
Another factor of Kante's performance that night which he will need to reinvigorate for the London derby is to defend space when outnumbered in midfield.
The Frenchman was superb at intercepting passes and cutting off the supply into City's strike force and must look to do the same against Tottenham, otherwise should Spurs find an avenue of attack, it could prove fatal.
Stepping back from the tactical dimensions of the clash, Spurs enter the London derby with fewer hours rest following their Europa Conference League fixtures on Thursday.
Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, Tanguy Ndombele, and Oliver Skipp all played at least 70 in their 2-2 draw away to Rennes, meanwhile, Dele Alli entered the stage with just over ten to go.
Therefore, Harry Winks was the only senior central midfielder to be handed a rest ahead of Spurs' clash with Chelsea bolstering the Blues' efforts of winning the midfield battle.
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