Sky Sports pundits Paul Merson and Steve Sidwell Maurizio Sarri is utilising N’Golo Kante in the wrong manner and failing to get the best out of him, as reported by football.london.
Kante, considered one of the best defensive midfielders in world football, won back-to-back Premier League titles in 2015/16 and 2016/17, WITH lEICESTER City and then Chelsea.
He also went on to help France win the World Cup in Russia this summer, however Sarri opted to bring in Jorginho from Napoli during the summer and has favoured starting the Italian in that defensive midfield role for the Blues.
Kante has therefore been forced to play more on the right side of midfield in a more advanced role.
However Merson and Sidwell both believe that Kante’s talent is wasted in his new role.
Merson said:
I don’t think it’s Kante’s position in a more advanced role.
He’s not going to get you five goals in a whole season and he’s probably not going to get five assists, it’s a bit of a waste of a position really.
Jorginho is a proper player, he’s always looking forward, his first thought it to pass forward, but to win two league titles with two different clubs just shows how good he [Kante] is.
Sidwell added:
I don’t think the system suits Kante and I think he feels that as well. I know he’s got the legs, is a wiling runner and seems like a nice fella off the pitch and will just say ‘yeah ok I’ll do that for you’, but I think he’s best suited to sit in front of that back four, shoring everything up, doing everyone’s work and giving it to the [other] players to go and win the game.
Merson went on to offer some advice to Sarri when discussing the Blues’ chances of winning the Premier League this term.
In the big games I think he’s got to play Kante right next to Jorginho. Those two have just got to sit in front of the back four because I don’t really trust the back four, especially in the big games.
Play them both in there in the big, big games then I think they’ll be all right.
