Former Chelsea duo Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois reportedly want N’Golo Kante to follow in their footsteps in swapping Stamford Bridge for the Santiago Bernabeau.
Belgian goalkeeper Courtois signed for Real Madrid last summer for £35million having forced a move away by threatening to see out his contract.
In contrast to Courtois’ departure, Hazard approached his move away in a respectable manner having served the club for a number of prosperous years.
Real’s new number seven joined Zinedine Zidane’s side for an initial £90million which could rise as high as £170million.
Courtois’ wish was granted and Hazard made the move - the pair are reportedly looking to do all they can to fly Kante over.
‘I am flattered’
Kante joined Chelsea from Leicester in 2016 for £32million following the Foxes' incredible title win and has gone on to make 145 appearances, picking up silverware along the way.
Inside just three seasons with the Blues the 2018 World Cup winning midfielder has won Chelsea and Premier League Player of the Year, the Premier League, the FA Cup and the Europa League.
Chelsea’s number seven has played at the highest level for club and country, which has rightfully attracted attention from the other clubs.
In an interview earlier this year the Kante claimed to be flattered by the attention he was receiving but insisted he was happy at the Bridge.
“It's rewarding to be wanted by big clubs, when coaches want you in their project it's nice,” he said. “But I'm happy with my choices and feel good at Chelsea. I'm planning for the next season at Chelsea.”
Four years to go
The harmless yet tenacious midfielder has just under four years remaining on a contract that keeps him tied to the club until he is 32 years old.
This means the highly sought-after midfielder will force interested teams to bid significant sums that are truer to the value and quality Kante holds.
This was not the case when Courtois forced a move away when he had just one year remaining on his contract.
This consequently left Chelsea with an unfeasible £30million sum they had to accept, or they would have had an unhappy player for the season before he potentially left for free.