Kante insists Chelsea title challenge a different prospect

Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante is keen to reproach any comparisons between the Blues’ title charge this campaign and the unexpected title-winning journey of his former club Leicester City last season.

Kante, who has missed just one league game due to injury in the last four seasons, confirms there is greater expectancy at his new club due to the calibre of players in the squad.

The Frenchman said: “It’s totally different. Last season, we were top at this stage, but we didn’t expect to be there. We just wanted to keep our position for the longest possible time.  We did not know if we were going to do it because there were a lot of teams behind us.

“Here at Chelsea it’s different. It’s a club of champions. We want to win everything and always be at the top. It’s nothing special, we just try to win every game.

“At Chelsea I think about 80 or 90 per cent of the team have won something, either at Chelsea or elsewhere. You can see people are not getting carried away because nothing is done yet.”

(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

Kante’s Chelsea are comfortably clear at the top of the Premier league but he is fully focused on improving off the pitch to help his new side’s cause.

“I think there are some things you can control and some other things you can’t,” Kante said.

“Me, I just try to work on my ‘invisible training’, as we call it in French – things away from the pitch and the training ground. I try to sleep very well, to eat very well and to do the best for my health and my body.

“Sometimes you are more tired, but this is football. We play often, we sometimes have three games a week, and you have to manage your fitness well.”