N'Golo Kante Says Maurizio Sarri Didn't Make 'Mistake' to Cause Hamstring Injury

Chelsea's N'Golo Kante has defended manager Maurizio Sarri after the Italian said he made a "mistake" that led to the midfielder suffering a hamstring injury. 

The Frenchman had to be withdrawn early in the Blues' 3-0 win over Watford on Sunday, and Sarri said he should not have started Kante.

However, per Goal's Nizaar Kinsella, the 28-year-old has not held him responsible:

"No. I was just fine, and it just happened. I'm OK, I just have pain through my hamstring, and I just need a bit of time to check what it is. That is one possibility [that I will be out until the Europa League final], but first, we need to check and take the time to check everything to see how long it will take."

Kante lasted fewer than 10 minutes against the Hornets:

Kinsella relayed Sarri's comments on the injury:

As a result of the issue, Kante is set to miss the second leg of the UEFA Europa League semi-final with Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday and the last day of the Premier League season on Sunday, in which the Blues take on his former side Leicester City.

The latter fixture matters little, as Chelsea's win against Watford assured them of a place in the top four and qualification to the UEFA Champions League next season.

The former represents Chelsea's final opportunity to deliver silverware this season, though, and having drawn 1-1 in Germany, the Blues are not through to the final just yet.

Kante will be in a race to be fit for the final on May 29 if his side make it there, and he wants Chelsea to deliver a strong end to a turbulent campaign:

"At the end, we all want a good season and to finish well. So we hope we can get what we want on Thursday and go to the final. We want to qualify for the Champions League and get a trophy. It would be a great finish.

"Why not? It can make this season be cheerful. But step by step, the first step is to get to the final."

Kante will be a significant loss if he's unavailable against Frankfurt, as he would be in the final, where Arsenal or Valencia will await. The Gunners took a 3-1 lead in their tie at the Emirates Stadium.

Mateo Kovacic will likely fill in for Kante if he can't feature, but the Croatian hasn't had a particularly inspiring season at Stamford Bridge and might struggle to match the Frenchman's irrepressible energy, work rate or ball-winning capabilities.