Rudiger praises two Chelsea teammates' 'lively' displays in Wolves draw
Antonio Rudiger has praised N’Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic’s “lively” performances on their returns from injuries in Chelsea’s 0-0 draw with Wolves on Sunday.
Kante, who started in midfield with Trevoh Chalobah, was arguably one of the two Chelsea best performers at the Molineux Stadium alongside Thiago Silva.
The 30-year-old completed two tackles and two interceptions, as usual, but he also completed five dribbles in the game from six attempts.
Kovacic, on the other hand, came on in the second half, and his presence helped the visitors increase the pressure in the last 25 minutes of the game.
Rudiger highlighted the importance of the midfield duo’s returns for the team.
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“It’s not easy for him [Kante] because he’s been out a number of times, the same as well for Kova,” the Germany international told Chelsea TV.
“But they came in, and they were lively.
“That’s very important for us because it’s clear we need them.”
Their returns were not enough in the end, unfortunately, as Chelsea only manage to create one clear-cut chance despite having 63 percent possession of the ball.
The lack of any number nine was very clear as Christian Pulisic, who played in the central forward position, once again struggled to make an impact in this role.
Chelsea failed to create enough goalscoring opportunities, says Rudiger
Rudiger also admitted that he feels disappointed with the result despite their having to deal with several key absences.
“That point feels like a loss, to be honest,” he explained.
“Doesn’t matter the circumstances and everything, it doesn’t feel good.
“I think we still had enough competitive team out there to do something. We should’ve provided more chances to score, which we failed to.”
