Chelsea have made N'Golo Kante available for transfer amid interest from Manchester United, it has been claimed.
Mirror Football exclusively reported earlier this month that the Premier League, Champions League and World Cup winner was a target for new Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag, who wants to bolster United's midfield department in the summer transfer window.
Despite Thomas Tuchel describing Kante as Chelsea's version of Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah, The Athletic now say that the Blues are willing to sell the France star for a cut-price following their long-awaited takeover which was finalised on Saturday morning. Kante endured an injury-hit season last time out and only has 12 months left on his Stamford Bridge contract.
However, Tuchel labelled his team's third-place finish this term a "miracle" given that the former Leicester City hero was ruled out for much of the campaign. "I think he is our key, key, key player; but key, key, key players need to be on the pitch," the Blues boss declared.
"He plays only 40 per cent of the games. So it's maybe a miracle that we arrived in third place. Because he is our Mo Salah, he is our (Virgil) Van Dijk, he is our (Kevin) De Bruyne, he is simply that player. He is our Neymar, he is our Kylian Mbappe; he is the guy who makes the difference. And if you only have him 40 per cent it's a huge problem.
"Given that percentage it's maybe a miracle of how consistent we produce results and puts everything into perspective. Because I saw Liverpool without Van Dijk last season and they struggled, heavily. And you see the difference. So N'Golo is our key player, and he needs to be on the pitch."
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Tuchel continued: "Imagine last year, he was in the last five matches of Champions League man of the match. I mean they handed him the trophy before the match, because it was clear when he played he would be man of the match. It was like this. And this guy who gets man of the match in every Champions League game, he's only here for 40-something per cent of the match.
"This is huge for us. We do everything to solve it, and of course him as well. I don’t blame him, it's a concern and it's a fact that we miss him a lot. Because he brings something unique in world football. He has that ability to lift everybody up and make the difference. And this is the challenge for him, and for us."
