Chelsea star N’Golo Kante could have joined Middlesbrough after fan spotted him while playing on holiday in 2013
N’GOLO KANTE could have signed for Middlesbrough in 2013 – had the Teesside outfit listened to the advice of one eagle-eyed fan.
Boro supporter Dennis Abbot called on the club to make a move for the Frenchman while he was on holiday in Normandy.
Abbot watched Kante play for Caen in 2013 – two years before Leicester poached him from Ligue 1 in a £5.6million deal.
And, having recognised his enormous talent, he immediately brought the midfielder to Boro’s attention.
The fan labelled the Frenchman “an outstanding creative player” in a tweet sent to the Teesside club.
Abbot wrote: “Boro scouts, tell Tony Mowbray to check out Caen midfielder N’Golo Kante before Wenger gets him. Top top player.”
The club acknowledged Abbot’s comment, saying it had been “passed on to scouts”.
To which he replied: “That’s great. He’s an outstanding creative player, winning plaudits from media & players alike.”
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Rather dismissively, Boro replied: “Thanks Dennis – they’re going to look.”
Fast forward to the present and Kante is a World Cup winner and two-time Premier League champion – with Chelsea looking to cash in on him this summer.
He played the key role in Leicester’s miraculous Premier League triumph in 2016 – before moving to Chelsea for £30m later that summer.
The Frenchman has since then won the Premier League again, two FA Cup trophies and the Europa League title – cementing his reputation as one of the world’s best midfielders.
And Boro fans are fuming they missed out on such a gem, with one joking: “Dodged a bullet here lads, I’m glad we ended up with Lee Tomlin instead.”
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Another tweeted: “Hey Boro, have ya fired the scouts yet?”
A third wrote: “Can we get Tony Mowbray’s evaluation at the time?”
And one even said: “This is mental to be honest”.