ench newspaper Le Parisien reports that Leicester City midfielder N’Golo Kanté’s representatives have met with PSG sporting director Olivier Létang and told him that the midfielder is keen to stay in England rather than move back to Ligue 1. After his breakout season for the Premier League champions, Kanté’s relishing all the interest and is probably looking to leverage that into at least an upgraded contract over his current Leicester deal, which is rumored to include a highly enticing €25 million (£20m) release clause.
Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester City appear to be the main English clubs interested in Kanté, with the trio having already made contact with the player’s representatives. There’s still the option of Leicester offering improved terms, although it will surely be hard for the Foxes to keep hold of such a hot commodity for another season. Manager Claudio Ranieri did issue a warning to his “sons” to try to see beyond just the dollar signs.
“My phone will ring this summer but I will say: ‘Do you have enough money to buy my players?’ I would like to maintain all of them.”
“But if one of my players says to me I want to go there, I try to keep him. I suggest to everybody this is a fantastic club, we won the title, we can do something good in a few years. If you go away you don’t know what happens, here you are the king. It is much better to stay here one year more and look at what happens. Then maybe you can go anywhere.”
“You maybe change a team and go in the big teams, maybe you don’t start very well and stay outside the first XI, you slow down. It is important to choose very well for the lads because now for me as well the lads are my sons. If they come to me I say this, ‘Be careful’.”
-Claudio Ranieri; source: Telegraph
Kanté was instrumental to Leicester’s amazing title-winning campaign, and he would certainly be an interesting name to have at Chelsea. Alongside Cesc Fàbregas and under Antonio Conte’s command, his prowess in the midfield would be an instant upgrade to our midfield.
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