Kurt Zouma’s return could not come sooner for Chelsea and Antonio Conte
Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s clash with Arsenal, Antonio Conte revealed that Kurt Zouma is targeted for a return next month. It could not come soon enough.
Antonio Conte is making strides in his attempt to turn Chelsea from the hapless clowns of 2015/16 into a title-challenging team. One hindrance has been the defence. The Blues boss, though, revealed that Kurt Zouma could return as early as next month – a piece of news that will bring relief to Chelsea fans.
As Chelsea prepare to square off with London rivals Arsenal on Saturday, Conte stated that Zouma is inching ever closer to a return.
"For Zouma, I hope to see him in the training sessions next week…Possibly [he will return after the international break]. Probably – we will wait one week more. – via Metro"
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After the disaster that was last season, the Blues have shown significant improvement under Conte. The attitude of the team has been transformed, with late goals and an inability to give up being a theme thus far in this campaign.
However, the lack of a solid defence has been hindering results on the pitch. Chelsea have only kept one clean sheet in all competitive football, heaping pressure on the attack to take their chances up front.
Branislav Ivanovic, Gary Cahill and John Terry are all ageing and showing signs of it. Evidently their poor performances last season were just a consequence of life’s progression. Chelsea then failed to bring in sufficient cover during the summer transfer window, only signing David Luiz and Marcos Alonso in desperation on Transfer Deadline Day.
The frailties at the back have increased the importance of Zouma making a swift recovery. The youngster is a talented defender who took significant steps in his development last season. His pace and strength are exactly what Chelsea currently need in their backline.
However, while it is relieving to see that Zouma is nearly back to full-fitness, there are doubts over the type of player he will now be. The Frenchman’s knee injury was a serious one and unfortunately the sort of injury that can change careers.
The good news is that his youth puts him in a better position to deal with such issues effectively. In ten years’ time, Zouma may be able to look back upon this as a minor set-back in a successful career.
However, we will only know once Zouma takes the field in October and plays a competitive game. That is when the defender will find out how his joint reacts to the rigours of the sport.
For the moment, though, Chelsea fans should just be excited that their much-needed defensive cog is nearing the end of his recovery road.