West Ham linked with shock move for N'Golo Kante - but could it actually happen?

West Ham United are interested in bringing former Leicester City and Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante back to the Premier League, multiple reports have revealed.

The 33-year-old moved to Saudi Arabia last summer to join Al Ittihad on a four-year contract, joining a mass exodus of marquee players to the Middle East that included Karim Benzema and Neymar.

At his peak, Kante was the best defensive midfielder in the world, and played a key role in Leicester's astonishing Premier League title success in 2016. His ability was quickly recognised by Chelsea, who won the title in the Frenchman's first season at Stamford Bridge before going on win the Champions League, Europa League and Club World Cup among other top tier trophies.

Mounting injury problems restricted Kante to just seven Premier League appearances in his final year at Chelsea, but he looked back to somewhere near his best at Euro 2024 – playing a starring role in central midfield as France reached the semi-finals of the competition.

The Guardian report that West Ham are in negotiations with Kante's camp over a shock return to England, and there's said to be a 'willingness' from both parties to get a deal done.

A £20m fee has been mooted, with new West Ham head coach Julen Lopetegui understood to be a huge fan of Kante's dating back to his days as Real Madrid manager, and the player himself hinted before Euro 2024 that a move back to Europe could be on the cards.

"No, it's not over," Kante said when asked if his career in Europe was over. "I appreciate the feedback. In Saudi Arabia, it's new football, a new experience.

"Finding these feelings again with the French team is beautiful, it touches me, we want to do well. But that's not a question I’m asking myself today.

"I feel good, last season went well with Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, we had a good preparation with the French team. At the moment I feel good, I hope this continues."

The Hammers are in need of additional central midfielders. Kalvin Phillips' loan spell from Manchester City last season proved to be an unmitigated disaster and Flynn Downes has been allowed to join Southampton on a permanent basis – leaving Edson Alvarez, Tomas Soucek and James Ward-Prowse as the only real options if you discount the more forward-thinking Lucas Paqueta.

ANALYSIS

West Ham have been down this road many times before, being linked with big-name players before seeing a potential transfer fall by the wayside.

Kante would bring star appeal, undoubted quality and a winning mentality to London Stadium – all traits that push West Ham towards the level they want to consistently get to. But there are obvious concerns for supporters to digest too, namely Kante's fitness record towards the end of his time at Chelsea and, perhaps more importantly, his unbelievably high wages in Saudi.

At the time, Kante was reported to have signed a contract paying him north of £400,000-per-week – figures that are beyond the Premier League's richest teams let alone West Ham. For there to be a willingness to do a deal from both sides, there must be an indication that Kante is willing to take a massive cut. The question is how low are he and his representatives willing to go?

At 33, Kante's best years are behind him and you could argue that West Ham don't have the disposable income to spend £20m on a midfielder who has no resale value. They also need to sign a right-back, centre forward and probably another centre-back, given Kurt Zouma's clear knee issues and Nayef Aguerd's continual links with a move away.

But the opportunity to sign a player like Kante doesn't come along often. Time will tell whether or not West Ham are barking up the wrong tree but it's an intriguing prospect at the very least.

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