عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Sports

Chelsea's Kovacic to Miss FA Cup Semi-Final Due to Hamstring Injury

Mateo Kovacic. (Getty Images)
Mateo Kovacic. (Getty Images)
TT
TT

Chelsea's Kovacic to Miss FA Cup Semi-Final Due to Hamstring Injury

Mateo Kovacic. (Getty Images)
Mateo Kovacic. (Getty Images)

Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic will miss Saturday's FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City at Wembley due to a hamstring injury, manager Thomas Tuchel said.

Kovacic missed Tuesday's 1-0 Champions League quarter-final second leg defeat by Porto, though Chelsea still reached the last four 2-1 on aggregate and will face either Real Madrid or Liverpool.

"(On Monday) in training he got a muscle injury in his hamstring after 20 minutes, more or less out of nothing," Tuchel said after Tuesday's game.

"He is for sure out for the game against City as well, which is a big loss."

Tuchel started N'Golo Kante in Kovacic's absence, with the France international playing the full game after returning from a hamstring problem.

"N'Golo is incredible," Tuchel said. "We took a little risk with N'Golo but this was the moment to put him on the field and hope he had the energy for 90 minutes.

"He wins so many balls and gives everybody confidence. He did perfect and now it's time to recover good."

Most Viewed

 
 
Sports

Bayern Have Attacking Options to Replace Kane, Says Kompany

Bayern's head coach Vincent Kompany claps hands during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP)
Bayern's head coach Vincent Kompany claps hands during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP)
TT
TT

Bayern Have Attacking Options to Replace Kane, Says Kompany

Bayern's head coach Vincent Kompany claps hands during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP)
Bayern's head coach Vincent Kompany claps hands during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich at the Signal-Iduna Park in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. (AP)

Bayern Munich have enough talented players to replace injured striker Harry Kane, starting on Tuesday with their German Cup round of 16 tie against holders Bayer Leverkusen, coach Vincent Kompany.

The England captain, who has netted 20 goals across all competitions this season and leads the Bundesliga scorers' list with 14, suffered a thigh muscle injury in Saturday's 1-1 league draw at Borussia Dortmund.

Kane is expected to be out for a couple of weeks but Kompany said he hoped he could still return to action before the winter break starts on Dec. 22. Bayern are top of the Bundesliga with a four-point lead over Eintracht Frankfurt.

"It is difficult to say at this moment but there is a chance for him to still play this year," Kompany told a press conference on Monday.

"But he will miss several games and to replace him, you know you cannot replace the goals or the player one-for-one. That's why he is a top player."

Kompany said players like Thomas Mueller, Serge Gnabry, Michael Olise and Leroy Sane had enough experience to fill the gap.

"We have talent in the team and need to solve it differently. We won't be lacking talent tomorrow but it will look different," Kompany said.

"We have many options. Thomas Mueller, Mathys Tel, Gnabry, Olise, Leroy. I now named almost everyone. Obviously, Harry has scored 20 goals... but we have dangerous players in attack."

Bayern last won the German Cup in 2020 and have failed to get past the quarter-finals since, losing in the second round in three of the past four seasons.

"We play the Cup holders tomorrow. One of the top two or three games in Germany, and I hope our performance will match the importance of the game," Kompany said.