Kante: How Chelsea helped me achieve my dream, infused winning spirit in me

Ngolo Kante has hailed the “Chelsea spirit” of constantly winning trophies as he bids the club farewell following his move to Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ittihad.

The 32-year-old spoke in a chat with Chelsea’s media team on Wednesday.

Kante, whose contract was billed to expire at the end of June, has penned a three-year deal reportedly worth £86m with Al-Ittihad.

The French midfielder leaves Stamford Bridge after seven years, winning the UEFA Champions League (UCL), English Premier League, Europa League, FA Cup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.

Speaking on his time at Chelsea, Kante said immediately after he joined the London club, he felt the “burning desire to win titles and trophies”.

He added that Chelsea helped him achieve his dream of being a top-class player.

“Ever since I joined, that need to win has been there. It’s the Chelsea spirit, and you feel it straight away,” the French midfielder said.

“The players feel, and all the coaches we’ve had, they’ve all shared a burning desire to win titles and trophies.

“I’ve always wanted to be at the top, and being at Chelsea, they helped me achieve my dream. Here I’ve celebrated great victories, great trophies, and I’ve been able to grow as a footballer.

“As I said earlier, my dream was to become a footballer and to try and win trophies. Joining Chelsea was the perfect arrangement for me to achieve those dreams.

“The first day I joined Chelsea, I was told very early on that the objective here is always to win trophies. Always.

“I’ve managed to do that, and I’m so grateful to my coaches, my teammates and the Chelsea supporters for helping me achieve this.

“The last few years at this club have been great for me and, I hope, for the Chelsea fans too.”

The gifted midfield powerhouse joins Karim Benzema at Al-Ittihad FC. The former Real Madrid striker moved to the Jeddah-based club last month.

Kante was named the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Footballer of the Year and the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year for the 2016/17 EPL season.

He also played a key role as France won the World Cup in 2018.