N’Golo Kante sustained a hamstring injury in France’s World Cup qualifying win over Bulgaria on Saturday and will likely miss Chelsea’s trip to Crystal Palace this weekend, to the dismay of The Blues fans in the Transfer Tavern.

The diminutive midfielder has enjoyed a remarkable rise from the French second division, lifting consecutive Premier League titles first with Leicester City and most recently with Antonio Conte’s Chelsea. His all-action style has been essential to the success of both those sides and his endurance, tenacity and work-rate allow him to do the job that two ordinary midfielders are able to do combined.

Therefore, his absence against Crystal Palace is a major blow to the champions due to lack of depth to their squad and more pointedly their midfield following the departures of Nemanja Matic and Nathaniel Chalobah in the summer.

Although the Eagles are in turmoil and play host to Chelsea having not picked up a point or scored a goal this campaign, the need for a solution to the Kante-sized-hole in the middle of the park for the West-London club remains prevalent.

Here are 3 clever ways Conte can ensure Chelsea don’t miss the Frenchman at Selhurst Park…

Hand Drinkwater a debut

Kante shared a title-winning midfield with Danny Drinkwater at Leicester and a year after the French international made his way to Stamford Bridge, the England international finalised a switch to London for £35million.

The former Manchester United man has been unable to make his debut, however, because of a calf injury. But as he approaches full-fitness, he may need to be ushered into the starting lineup to provide the physical attributes that are lost without Kante.

He exhibits tremendous energy and industry and in addition to those qualities, he offers a passing range unrivalled by his teammate that gives Conte greater flexibility.

Drop Willian slightly deeper

Should Conte prefer not to risk using Drinkwater too soon after he’s recovered from injury then moving the explosive Willian into a deeper role could provide greater stability to Chelsea’s setup.

He is naturally an attacking player with excellent set-piece skills, a sublime touch and terrific vision. However, one of his key attributes is his determination and discipline which would allow him to drop into a midfield trio potentially as he would assume his defensive responsibilities when required without totally constricting what he can offer going forward.

There, he could also harness his dribbling ability to drive with the ball and break through the lines.

Use Fabregas and Bakayoko in tandem

Kante is an exceptional player but his absence wouldn’t be as unsettling for Chelsea if they had confidence that anyone else within their armoury could partner the more-attack minded Cesc Fabregas in a midfield two.

Fabregas has a delightful technique and range of passing with his positional play in a defensive sense the only concern for the Chelsea fans in the bar. He can wander at times and allow attacking midfielders to run off the back of him so his partner needs to be very good at covering for him, which Kante is.

Bakayoko is a superb talent and has impressed since joining The Blues from Monaco, yet it is difficult to expect a player of his limited Premier League experience in important matches.

However, against sides such as Crystal Palace, the pair should be able to compliment each other nicely and work together cohesively to secure three points for their team.

Chelsea fans… how would you solve the problem? Let us know!