Why Arsene Wenger Was Right to Sign Granit Xhaka Instead of N’Golo Kante

When Arsenal face Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium, N’Golo Kante will certainly be in the lineup for the visitors.

Since moving to west London this summer, Kante has quickly established himself as an integral part of Antonio Conte’s preferred starting XI. Arsene Wenger may well look on enviously—he’s on record about his admiration for his fellow Frenchman. However, he will feel reassured that he has enough midfield riches of his own—especially with new boy Granit Xhaka beginning to make his mark on the side. 

Kante rose to prominence last season after his remarkable ability to break up play helped propel Leicester City to the unlikeliest of title successes. A good summer at Euro 2016 raised his profile even higher, and ultimately, Chelsea pounced to secure the defensive midfielder.

Kante’s early appearances for Chelsea have suggested his form for Leicester was no fluke, with club legend Claude Makelele telling Samuel Stevens of The Independent: “He is a young player I really like, and I hope he will be better than I was.”

Even if Kante can merely match Makelele’s level, he will be a huge asset to the Blues. 

Wenger must have considered a swoop for Kante himself. After all, this summer he lost two defensive midfielders in Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini, who both left the club at the end of their contracts.

A holding player was always going to be a priority for the Arsenal boss, and Kante would surely have figured in this thoughts. After all, Wenger made no secret of his respect for the player’s talents.

Speaking to beIN Sports (h/t Sky Sports’ Coral Barry) earlier this summer, Wenger said:

I admire and like N’Golo Kante a lot. He gives you ideas. He gives you the feeling that the higher the level he plays at, the more at ease he is.

We are talking about numbers. He has the most interceptions in Europe and by far. He has incredible quality. He feels the game, only very few people can do that. He’s always where he needs to be.

It is very rare to have that in the central midfielder. Not always orthodox, but always in the right place.

Quite what Wenger’s “ideas” were we’ll never know. Ultimately, it seems there were two main reasons he elected …

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