Chelsea star N’Golo Kante test positive for Covid-19 and goes into self-isolation causing him to miss Juventus clash

The Blues midfielder, 30, has only recently returned from injury and had hoped to play in the crunch Champions League game.

N’Golo Kante has tested positive for Covid-19 and has gone into self-isolation, meaning he will miss games against Juventus and Southampton Credit: Getty

But the club have not confirmed Kante has gone into self-isolation following his positive result.

The France star will also miss Saturday’s Premier League clash against Southampton.

Chelsea won their tournament opener 1-0 at home to Zenit St Petersburg earlier this month.

But Thomas Tuchel’s side go into the game in Turin on the back of their first defeat of the season – the 1-0 Premier League defeat at the hands of Manchester City.

On Tuesday, Tuchel confirmed: “Christian, Reece, and Mason are out.

N’Golo, unfortunately, tested positive and he needs to quarantine and follow the government protocols.

James picked up an ankle injury during Saturday’s loss against City, with Tuchel revealed the England star will miss at least a week.

The Stamford Bridge boss added: “It’s still very painful.

“It will come down to pain management in the end and how much he can accept.

“Right now we are looking at a minimum of one more week.”

Juve’s Dybala and Morata out of Chelsea CL clash

Juventus duo Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata have been ruled out of the Champions League group-stage clash with Chelsea this week because of injuries.

Dybala suffered a thigh problem in Sunday’s Serie A win over Sampdoria – withdrawn in tears after just 22 minutes and having scored his side’s opener, while Morata also came off with eight minutes of normal time remaining.

Manager Massimiliano Allegri confirmed both players will miss the tie at Juventus Stadium and the subsequent derby with Torino, but he hopes to have them back after the next international break in early October.