N'Golo Kante is fearful of a return to training after experiencing "a bad time" with symptoms during the lockdown, claims Chelsea goalkeeper Willy Caballero.
The midfielder attended Chelsea's first training session back last week after testing negative for Covid-19, but was subsequently granted compassionate leave by Frank Lampard with the Frenchman concerned about his family's health.
While Premier League clubs are to vote on a resumption of contact training on Wednesday ahead of a possible June return, Kante has not yet returned to Chelsea training.
Standard Sport understands Chelsea are putting Kante under no pressure to return, with the Frenchman reportedly prepared to miss the remainder of the season, and Caballero reveals the midfielder's experiences throughout lockdown have concerned him.
"It’s very understandable," veteran goalkeeper Caballero told TNT Sports in an Instagram Live chat. "He tested negative for Covid-19 but he had a bad time of it during quarantine with symptoms of the virus that gave him that fear.
In Pictures | Chelsea players return for training
"We respect him and we’ll wait until he feels comfortable because the truth is that to do what we’re doing you have to feel okay and feel confidence and after we start again, we have to all go forward together.
"N’Golo is a very humble and hard-working person who is always smiling and he must have his reasons to lift up his hand and say what he’s said.
"We did a lot of Zoom meetings with Frank Lampard and the other players and he said he didn’t feel safe going back to training because of the way he had felt over the last few weeks.
"We know he’s someone who loves training and running and is incapable of lying about something like this. We support him and we respect him."
