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Football

31st Jul 2018

Chelsea set to make N’Golo Kanté the club’s highest paid player

Chelsea have responded to reports linking the midfielder with a move to Paris-Saint Germain by offering him a new deal, roughly doubling his wage

Reuben Pinder

He will become the club’s best paid player

Chelsea are set to offer N’Golo Kanté a new contract, roughly doubling his wage to a reported £290,000 per week, according to The Times.

The contract offer comes after French champions Paris Saint-Germain showed interest in signing the defensive midfielder, who helped France to win the World Cup this summer.

If Kanté were to sign the deal, he would see his wages roughly double to £15m a season over the course of five years, making him the highest earner at the club, which is currently Eden Hazard who earns a reported £220,000 per week.

Chelsea are also prepared to give Eden Hazard a pay rise, but the winger recently admitted that he was considering a move away and is stalling on signing a new contract. Barcelona are the latest club to express interest in Hazard, who will cost more than £200m.

Kanté already has two Premier League titles to his name, both in his first seasons at Leicester and Chelsea respetively. Going into his fourth season at Chelsea, he has become indisposable to the club and new boss Maurizio Sarri will be keen to keep hold of him amid interest from PSG.

Kanté will play alongside new signing Jorginho, who joined from Napoli with Sarri, and the pair are expected to create a formmidable partnership in the middle of the park. The duo’s skillsets complement each other well, with Jorginho’s passing vision and composure on the ball, and Kanté’s energy, pressing and line-breaking runs combining to create the ideal midfield pair. On paper, at least.

Keeping hold of Kanté will be vital to Chelsea’s chances of success this season, as the possibility of losing both Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois looms. Courtois is edging closer to a move to Real Madrid, while both Barça and Madrid have shown interest in Hazard.

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