Injured Kante is ’50-50′ for final

Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri says N’Golo Kante has a 50-50 chance of being fit for the Europa League final.

The French midfielder suffered a slight knee injury in training over the weekend and could join Ruben Loftus-Cheek on the sidelines for the all-London match against Arsenal in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Wednesday.

Sarri admitted the injury is a concern for the Blues but did suggest that the chances of Kante playing had increased over the past 24 hours.

Sarri: “He had a very little problem with his knee. The problem is the timing because we only have four days. We are trying.

“It is not really a very serious injury but we have the problem of just three to four days to try to recover at the moment.

“We will try to the last moment but we don’t know. It is 50-50. Yesterday 60-40 no, today 50-50.”

Kante missed the end of the domestic season with a hamstring problem but was on course to return for the final.

His absence would be a major blow for Chelsea, particularly in light of Loftus-Cheek’s injury.

“We are in trouble with the midfield (if Kante does not play). At the moment we only have three midfielders for three positions,” Sarri added.

“N’Golo is really very important. I hope to recover him. Without him it is a problem.”