Cool-headed Kante is ready to tackle his new double objective
ANYONE who has watched N’Golo Kante in action knows he is not the kind of player to take things easy — and he is certainly not going to start now. Kante is weeks away from beginning his third season in England and some might question how he can top the previous two.
After the fairytale title triumph with Leicester in 2016, he collected another League winner’s medal at Chelsea last May, while also claiming the Player of the Year award from the Professional Footballers’ Association and the Football Writers’ Association.
But as far as the France international is concerned, this next season promises to be the most important campaign to date. “There could be two new things for me over the next 12 months,” he explains. “I have never played in the Champions League or the World Cup.
“The Champions League normally will come but with the World Cup I still have to qualify with France. It could be a very good season for me to discover these two competitions.
“But to feature in these competitions is one thing and to do well is another, and this is what I have to do.”
Kante’s midfield dominance will again be crucial to coach Antonio Conte. The club have brought in his France team-mate Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco for £40million to help.
Kante may need a towering distraction alongside him. So playeplayers such as Eden Hazard, Pedro RodrRodriguez and Victor Moses to move into the space he creates. One of his besbest performances for Juventus was in thet 4-2 defeat at Bayern Munich eaearly in 2016, which saw them eleliminated from the Champions LeLeague. Counter-attacking in devastatinastating fashion, Morata dominated the BayerBayern defence until he was bizarrely substisubstituted in the second half.
He iis more mobile than Diego Costa. MoratMorata is also an unselfish player, happy to supsupply opportunities for others. He is excellentexc in the air, too — great news for CoConte’s 3-4-3 system, which requires Moses and Marcos Alonso, the wingbacksbacks, to set up attacks.
Even though he is able to operate outsioutside the penalty area, Morata underunderstands the need to occupy the
cencentral areas of the pitch. So when significant has been his contribution to Chelsea’s and Leicester’s success, there is a danger he will be an increasingly marked man. Becoming the target for special attention is not something that concerns him.
“I don’t know if teams will man-mark me but we have some very good players,” he says. “If I am marked, it will leave more space for the others.”
Kante is part of the 25-man squad that arrived in Beijing last night for the start of Chelsea’s pre-season tour. Just before leaving London, the club confirmed Conte had agreed a new two-year Chelsea need a man in the box, he will be there. He is also useful in defence, especially when facing set-pieces.
As well as Morata’s skill, Conte was also attracted to his attitude. Unlike Costa, Morata will rarely be in the headlines for arguing with colleagues or his behaviour at the training ground. Morata is an uncomplicated individual: he works hard and puts the team’s demands ahead of his own.
Nobody should expect Morata to be overawed, either. He grew up at Real Madrid, moved to Juve, then returned to Madrid. At two of the world’s greatest clubs, Morata handled the pressure.
He makes his mark in the biggest matches, too. In 2015, Morata scored in both legs of Juventus’ Champions League semi-final win over Madrid — even though Madrid were his parent club — and in the Final with Barcelona.
‘I’ve never played in the Champions League or the World Cup, so it could be a very good season’ N’Golo Kante Despite the new league, the new country and the new culture, he delivered in Italy
contract and shortly after landing, they announced a deal for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata is in place.
When asked what Conte has been saying to the players so far, Kante reveals: “He has been speaking about working hard to get in a winning mentality quickly.
“We start a new chapter for Chelsea and a new chapter in our careers for everyone. We need to start to work to get our energy for the season. He didn’t speak about what we did last season and winning the League, he just spoke about working hard to be ready for the season coming up.”
Forgetting the behind-closeddoors run-out against Fulham last weekend, Chelsea’s first test will be against Arsenal at the Bird’s Nest Stadium on Saturday.