Legendary Nigerian midfielder Mikel Obi has disclosed that the arrival of French midfielder N’Golo Kanté at Chelsea prompted him to consider his future with the London club.
He mentioned that he was following Kanté closely during his stint with Leicester City and was highly impressed with his work rate as a midfielder, noting his excellent running, interceptions, and energy levels.
The former Super Eagles captain stated that Kanté’s performance at that time was far superior to his own, which would earn him less playing time since they both played in similar positions.
Speaking on a podcast, Obi said that he asked the Chelsea hierarchy for permission to leave the club when he knew his regular playing time would be in danger, which they agreed to.
“I was watching him [Kante] play for Leicester, and then when I knew he was coming to the club, I straight away knew my time was done, I needed to go. Because he doesn’t stop running. Sometimes when we make this sprint and you run with the ball and the action is finished, you go like, no, not Kanté, he will keep running back.
“You’re thinking, how? Where did he get this energy from? And I saw him train a few times at the club when I was still there, and I straight away knew I was done. And I spoke to the club that it was time for me to go,” he said.
Watch Mikel Obi’s video below:
@post.gametalks John Obi Mikel Reveals When His Chelsea Career was OVER 😱 #footballedit #fyp #soccer #footballtiktok #football #premierleague #johnobimikel #ngolokante ♬ original sound – Post.gametalks
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