The Blues went into the international break on a sour note after blowing a two-goal lead at home to Sheffield United, but it may have come at the perfect time for some of their players.
Frank Lampard has endured a frustrating start in the Blues hot-seat, winning just one of his four games in charge.
It would be the first time in years Chelsea would have gone four games with only one win but still the Blues have shown some positives.
After being thumped 4-0 away at Manchester United on his Premier League bow and being held to a 1-1 draw on his home debut against Leicester, all appeared to be moving in the right direction when Lampard secured his first win away at Norwich.
Nevertheless, their disastrous 2-2 draw against Sheffield United last Saturday will have left the former midfielder seriously pondering which men to select once international duty is done and dusted – and these four Blues stars could likely benefit from the break.
Kurt Zouma
After returning from a loan spell at Everton last term, Zouma has been woeful for Chelsea early on this season and has made costly mistakes at the back.
He gave away the penalty that allowed Marcus Rashford to open the scoring in their 4-0 defeat at Manchester United on the first day, while also scoring the own goal that saw Sheffield United complete their two-goal comeback last weekend.
The centre-back has been included in France’s squad for Euro 2020 qualifiers against Albania and Andorra, however, who could prove the perfect opponents for him to rediscover his best form.
N’Golo Kante
Chelsea leaking so many goals this season – nine in their first four league games to be precise – could be a result of Kante’s injury struggles.
He missed their opener at United through injury, but seemingly aggravated the knock by playing in the draw with Leicester and their Super Cup penalty shootout defeat by Liverpool.
Kante subsequently missed the Blues’ clashes with Norwich and Sheffield United, which saw them concede four goals.
The international break has come at a convenient time as far as the Frenchman’s fitness is concerned, as he can rest up and aim to recover in time for a trip to Wolves on September 14.
Cesar Azpilicueta
Another Chelsea star who has looked vulnerable at the back recently is captain Azpilicueta.
The Spaniard, who gave the ball away a whopping 20 times against Sheffield United, has not been at his best for a couple of years now.
However, he has never looked as shaky in his time at the Blues as he does now.
And after failing to earn a place in the Spain squad, Azpilicueta has the opportunity to fix some of his current faults on the training ground at Cobham ahead of their next outing.
Mateo Kovacic
Lampard is facing somewhat of an injury crisis in midfield, as Kovacic also picked up a knock in Chelsea’s draw with the Blades last weekend.
The Croatia international was forced to pull out of Zlatko Dalic’s squad with an Achilles injury, which the Blues are now assessing at Cobham.
Kovacic has looked impressive in the middle of the park early on, putting in one of his best displays for the club in their maiden victory at Norwich.
Like Kante, the international break gives the 25-year-old some much-needed time to regain fitness ahead of the club’s trip to Wolves.
