Chelsea are facing a repeat of Andreas Christensen, and Antonio Rudiger's transfer exit as N'Golo Kante continues to draw interest from abroad as he enters the final six months of his contract.
The France international has been a crucial absentee for the majority of the 2022/23 campaign after suffering a hamstring injury back in August during the 2-2 draw against Tottenham. The World Cup winner then aggravated the injury during his recovery in October, ruling him out of the World Cup.
Kante is unlikely to feature again this year for the Blues, with talks over a renewal for the 31-year-old's contract failing to prove successful. It now looks certain that Kante will leave Stamford Bridge at the end of the season, with foreign clubs able to negotiate a pre-contract agreement from January.
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Amidst the uncertainty over Kante's future at Chelsea, Inter Milan and Juventus are now weighing up a move for the Blues midfielder when the transfer window opens in January, according to La Repubblica. The report suggests both Italian clubs might be willing to pay an £18million fee in order to get Kante ahead of any more clubs who might try and sign him as a free agent in the summer.
Chelsea would almost certainly prefer to take a return on their investment as opposed to seeing the Frenchman leave on a free transfer at the end of the season, as was the case with fan-favourite Rudiger last season. Graham Potter is thought to be keen on strengthening his midfield options in the upcoming transfer windows, with the likes of Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice and Frenkie de Jong all rumoured to be on the Blues' shortlist.
Jorginho is in a similar position to Kante, with his contract also set to expire at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, meaning there could be plenty of change to Chelsea's midfield over the course of the next year. It is possible that Todd Boehly may attempt to use Kante as part of a potential swap deal, with Juventus midfielders Weston McKennie and Adrien Rabiot having both been linked with moves to Stamford Bridge, whilst Inter's Nico Barella and Marcelo Brozovic are also options for the west London outfit.
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