Cesc Fabregas has revealed Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante also has a ‘dark side’ to his game.
The Frenchman is renowned for being one of the ‘nicest and modest blokes’ in football. Kante reportedly refused to let his image rights be paid to an offshore tax haven, instead he told Chelsea he only wants a ‘normal salary’.
The midfielder was too shy to have a picture taken with the World Cup trophy after France’s 2018 triumph. And he only drives a Mini despite getting around £150,000-per-week at Stamford Bridge.
But Fabregas, who played alongside Kante at Chelsea, says he has a different side to his game which makes him very successful.
In his Telegraph column, Fabregas wrote: “N’Golo has a little dark side as well that I like, which I still see now when I watch him on television.
“He doesn’t lose his temper, but, if you watch, you will see that he does not mind fouling an opponent or getting a yellow card and he will not apologise or be nice to the other guy, he will just walk away.
“I like this and it gives a message to the opponent that N’Golo will not be too nice on the pitch. “To be a really top player, you need this. If you are nice on the pitch, then they eat you alive and I smile when I see his darker side.”
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Kante is one of the favourites to win the Ballon d’Or after his outstanding performances in Chelsea’s Champions League success.
He has already lifted the Premier League and World Cup and Fabregas believes a Euro 2020 victory should see the player crowned the world’s best player.
Ahead of France’s Euro opening match with Germany, Fabregas added: “It was Eden Hazard and I who gave N’Golo Kante his Brazilian nickname of N’Golinho.
“Obviously, it was a bit of fun but it showed how highly we rated N’Golo and how we appreciated some of the parts of his game that maybe other people didn’t see.
“Now everyone sees what an incredible player he is and, even if France do not win the Euros, N’Golinho is one of the greatest-ever players in his position.
“If France, who are my favourites for the tournament, do win the Euros then there will be a very strong case for N’Golo to win the Ballon d’Or having already added the Champions League to his World Cup and Premier League titles.”
