Medical expert Ben Dinnery has suggested that N’Golo Kante may wish to leave Chelsea for a less physically-demanding league.
The French midfielder has missed each of Chelsea’s last six games as he continues to struggle with injury.
Kante arrived in Stamford Bridge back in 2016 for £30m from Leicester City but his current contract expires at the end of the campaign.
The Blues have seen their latest offer to the 2016/17 PFA Player of the Year rejected, with issues over contract length seen as the main issue.
Now, Dinnery has claimed that Kante could look to move on with his injury problems a concern when it comes to negotiations.
He told Football Insider: “His injury record is definitely part of the conversation.
“I’m not saying his injury problems have been blown out of proportion because they are a huge part of the player we have seen in recent years.
“We went from someone who was everpresent to someone who has now started only just over 55 per cent of Chelsea’s league matches over the last three seasons.
“This needs to be considered as part of those talks. You can be the best player in the world but it doesn’t matter if you’re not available half of the time.
“The new owner drives a hard bargain and, while they don’t have a lot of football experience, they are business savvy. It could be that Kante wants to look elsewhere, maybe a less demanding league.“
Indeed, Kante’s injury issues have been persistent, particularly in the last few seasons limiting him to just 68 Premier League starts since the start of the 2019/20 campaign under Frank Lampard and Thomas Tuchel.
Described as “magic” by Rangers icon Ally McCoist, there is no denying the 53-cap France international’s quality but Chelsea fans are sure to be growing impatient of his fitness.
Kante will be 32 in January and while the 2018 World Cup winner may feel he has one more bumper contract in him, it could be that his future lies away from Stamford Bridge, with the west Londoners seemingly reluctant to meet his demands.
