Romano says Chelsea star’s move to Saudi Arabia is imminent after £172m offer to player

N’Golo Kante set to leave Chelsea for Al-Ittihad after huge offer

Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante’s move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad is imminent after the player was offered a bumper contract.

According to the journo, via Football.London, the player will earn £86million per year on a two-year deal. That amounts to £172million over the course of his stay in the country.

Such a deal is surely hard to turn down for any footballer, let alone a 32-year-old star whose first-team spot at Chelsea is under threat after notable injury issues in recent months.

Kante has been an elite player for us ever since he signed from Leicester City in the summer of 2016. His tireless running in midfield and his spectacular engine made the club’s midfield a force to be reckoned with against any opposition.

Farewell, Kante

But all good things must come to an end. His contract expires this summer (Transfermarkt) and it could be a risky strategy from Chelsea if they offered him a new long-term deal.

There is one problem in the approach we are seemingly taking. Jorginho and Kante could now depart us in back-to-back transfer windows while Mateo Kovacic (29) is also likely to join Manchester City.

Hence, we are sacrificing experience and putting too much trust in the youth. It is imperative we sign new midfielders this summer alongside a No. 9, and it is important that at least one midfielder is experienced and capable of being a leader.

More Chelsea News:

• Transfer News: Chelsea will need to fork out £40m to secure Brentford star David Raya
• Chelsea forward Kai Havertz’s transfer to Real Madrid could be imminent
• Chelsea to transfer-list Juventus target Christian Pulisic for the third window in a row

This seems like a summer of change in SW6. Mauricio Pochettino has a big job to do and the first major one should be trimming a bloated squad courtesy of erratic spending from Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in the last two transfer windows.