The Copa America, 2024 European Championship and so forth have dominated football's narrative over the past five weeks, but clubs such as West Ham United have very much been busy on the transfer front.
It's fair to say that while parting with David Moyes was probably the right call, trepidation lined the air in east London as United stepped into the murky unknown.
But head coach Julen Lopetegui and technical director Tim Steidten are working feverishly to improve the first-team squad, and while a range of rumours – such as negotiations for centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo and Manchester United's Aaron Wan-Bissaka – point toward some exciting additions, the latest player to be closing in on the London Stadium might just be the most exciting yet.
West Ham transfer news
According to The Guardian, West Ham are locked in talks with Al-Ittihad concerning the transfer of N'Golo Kante, who has been in Saudi Arabia for one year after leaving Chelsea.
Lopetegui is a long-term admirer of the 33-year-old, who is one of the most decorated and adulated midfielders of his generation, and the Irons attempted to sign him in 2015 before he left Caen for Leicester City.
Why West Ham should sign N'Golo Kante
The France international was one of his nation's standout performers at Euro 2024, with the wheels and wherewithal to dominate from the middle of the park, showcasing his trademark mobility and tenacity in regaining possession and progressing play.
Where to start? Kante is an iconic Premier League figure, instrumental in extraordinarily winning the Premier League with the Foxes in 2015/16 before moving to Chelsea and clinching the top-flight title and the Champions League – and a host of further honours besides.
Widely heralded as the signing of the summer as Leicester scored one of the greatest-ever sporting achievements, Kante has prospered wherever he has played, and he could even prove to be West Ham's best midfielder since Declan Rice, who was sold to Arsenal for £105m last summer after an illustrious east London career.
Matches played
6
7
Goals
0
0
Assists
0
1
Pass completion
90%
92%
Touches per game
65.5
88.7
Key passes per game
1.7
0.6
Dribbles per game
0.7
0.9
Ball recoveries per game
4.5
5.3
Tackles per game
2.0
2.7
Interceptions per game
1.0
1.1
Duels won per game
3.2 (51%)
5.1 (62%)
As you can see, while Rice upheld stronger defensive metrics in Germany over the past five weeks, Kante was far more creative while still maintaining an impressive 90% pass success rate. Moreover, the Frenchman still recorded noteworthy numbers vis-a-vis tackling and intercepting, recovery rate and progression frequency.
Once praised for his "magic" on the pitch by former Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas, Kante would not be a signing to dominate from the engine room for the next decade, but he could provide Lopetegui's side with a few years of exemplary service, bringing verve and steel to restore West Ham to European, perhaps even trophy-winning heights.
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