Former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham has taken to Instagram to praise Mateo Kovacic’s performance last night.
The midfielder was handed another start in the Champions League against RB Salzburg, and certainly repaid the faith put him in by Graham Potter.
The Croatian put in a fantastic performance as the Blues played some sensational stuff on their way to a 2-1 win against RB Salzburg.
The display was highlighted by an outstanding weak foot finish in the first half, capping off arguably the best half of football under the new manager so far.
He may not have even been trusted with an appearance from the start tonight if everyone would have been fully fit. Both Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were feeling the effects of playing a lot of high intensity games in a row.
Nevertheless, Kovacic took his chance and starred as qualification for the knockout stage of the Champions League.
Abraham impressed by Kovacic
His performance didn’t go unnoticed by those watching from afar. He drew praise from former teammate Abraham in the comments of his post-game Instagram post.
With Conor Gallagher also performing well, Kovacic will be hoping he has done enough to push for a start under Potter this weekend, as the manager prepares for his first journey back to his former club.
The players will know that there is surely an opportunity for a rest coming in a week’s time.
The home fixture in the Champions League against Dinamo Zagreb has had all the heat taken off it following the Blues securing their place in the knockout stage as group winners.
This will allow some youngsters such as Carney Chukwuemeka, Armando Broja and maybe even Omari Hutchinson the chance to start, while players who have hardly seen any gametime this season, such as Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria.