Chelsea legend prioritises a move to Camp Nou at the end of this season – report

Barcelona are following the transfer market closely in the hopes of finding solutions to their problems at a minimal cost. They have already indulged in several free transfers for a while now, acquiring the services of Memphis Depay, Eric Garcia, Sergio Aguero, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, among several others.

One of the names they have been following closely over the years is N’Golo Kante. The Chelsea midfielder becomes a free agent at the end of the 2022/23 season, and is prioritising a move to Barcelona, according to SPORT.

The World Cup winner has been in contact with Barça over the last few weeks, and knows that his move to Camp Nou depends on his recovery. He has picked up several injuries over the last two seasons, including a hamstring knock that ruled him out of the World Cup.

Kante wants to leave the Premier League, and was in contact with Barcelona last summer as well. However, reinforcing the midfield was not a priority for the Catalans after they had already signed Franck Kessie on a free transfer.

Barcelona believe that Kante is a ‘top-notch’ player still, and at 31, brings much-needed physique and experience to the side.

In fact, the report states that the Blaugranes could close this signing in January itself if the player recovers in time.

Barcelona also believe that Kante’s signing is important to reinforce the midfield, as Sergio Busquets will almost definitely leave the club after his contract clocks up next summer.

As such, the club have been looking for options in defensive midfield. And while Kante is not a natural 6, his defensive astuteness could go a long way in adding depth to Barça’s midfield.