The Tale Of Kante – From Leicester City To Chelsea
Leicester City’s fairytale last season and Chelsea’s title race this season have a few things in common. For starters, both journeys have been orchestrated by Italian masterminds. But more evidently, one French midfield engine, which seems to get better by the day, has had its impact. Midfielder N’Golo Kante, who is fast growing into one of the best players in his position, has been terrific for two seasons now – at the King Power and at Stamford Bridge.
There is a noticeable change in the system and style of play at both clubs but Kante has shown no issues in adjusting to either and now stands as the PFA player of the year for 2017. So how has he fared at the two clubs? Has he been consistent or has he shown an improvement in his stats?
Here is a comparison between Kante in the blue of Leicester and the blue of Chelsea
At the King Power last season, the midfielder made 400 passes less than his time at Chelsea so far and at a better accuracy. An accuracy of 89% at Chelsea is right up there with the best but the 82% accuracy last season was down to the system employed by Claudio Ranieri. However, Kante was more of a creator at Leicester City, making 26 key passes and 4 assists, compared to just 17 key passes and one assist this season, but again, he is hardly responsible for that at the Bridge.
Last season, he won almost double the number of tackles he has won this season and also 10% more of his aerial duels. This is where it gets interesting. While Kante made 156 interceptions in the previous season, more than any other player in the English top flight, he has just 74 to his name in his time at Chelsea. He has just four blocks to his name this campaign, as compared to 11 last season.
He has also been slightly more erratic, picking up 8 yellow cards and making 8 fouls more than last season, even having played 250 minutes less this season. As already mentioned, he is playing in a different style this season and has been given a completely different role under Conte. At Leicester City, he was alongside Danny Drinkwater, who is also adept at sitting back in the midfield. At Chelsea, Matic plays a similar role, but Kante has slightly more protection around him, making his work that much easier.
It is obvious that he was the star for Leicester in their title charge last season and though he has been influential this season, he is far from the clog in the midfield that he was at the King Power last season.