Barcelona are reportedly leaning more towards signing French World Cup winner N’Golo Kante this summer, over his Chelsea teammate Willian.
Barcelona are more interested in signing midfield dynamo N’Golo Kante from Chelsea than his teammate Willian, according to Spanish football expert Graham Hunter.
The Catalans have been strongly linked with a move for Brazilian international Willian this summer. Having reportedly had a £50 million bid rejected by Chelsea for the 29-year old, Barca are understood to have come up with another offer to secure his services.
However, according to Hunter, the reigning La Liga champions are likely to be more interested in Kante, following the diminutive midfielder’s exploits in the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. “Barca are far more interested in getting Kante than Willian,” Hunter told the Sky Sports Transfer Talk podcast.
“That is fully understandable, they have been looking for a player like him for a long time. Andres Iniesta has moved on and Sergio Busquets, without Iniesta next to him, while his brilliance remains, his pace, ability to get around the pitch tactically is very different to Kante, who is an extremely good footballer,” he went on to add.
The 27-year old Chelsea star played a pivotal role as France went on to lift their second World Cup. Prior to that, Kante had enjoyed another brilliant campaign with the Blues under former manager Antonio Conte, as they went on to win the FA Cup in May. Kante made 48 appearances across all competitions in the 2017/18 season, scoring once and setting up two more.
As Hunter claimed, someone of the Frenchman’s talents and abilities would be a great addition to the ranks at Barcelona, given that they saw Iniesta leave this summer and have also sold Paulinho back to Guangzhou Evergrande, while Busquets’ performances in the World Cup for Spain indicated he may not be the same force he once was.
But, it remains to be seen if Chelsea are willing to part with their midfield mainstay. The Blues are already facing the prospect of Eden Hazard’s departure to Real Madrid, while goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has also hinted that he is also likely to follow his compatriot to the Spanish capital.
Amidst all this, losing Kante in the same window would be a major blow for the West Londoners, as they look to begin a new era under recently appointed manager Maurizio Sarri.
If Barcelona end up making a move for Kante over Willian, it would open up a window of opportunity for Chelsea’s Premier League rivals Manchester United to sign the 29-year old, considering that they have had a long-standing interest in the player.
All said and done, Chelsea face a tough few weeks ahead, as they try and ensure that they don’t lose all of their best players in a single transfer window, which would leave them in a precarious position going into the new season.
