Sunday, June 6, 2021 at 11:15 PM• Mart Oude Nijeweeme • Last update: 23:06

N’Golo Kanté thinks it’s too early to talk about the Ballon d’Or. Following his strong performances in the Champions League, the Chelsea midfielder was put forward by various colleagues as a possible contender for the title of best footballer in the world, but says he is not yet working on it. Paul Pogba and Didier Deschamps, who work with Kanté in the French national team, among others, said that the small midfielder deserves the individual prize.

Kante was confronted with a question about the Ballon d’Or during the press conference in the run-up to France’s last friendly against Bulgaria (Tuesday). “I never pay much attention to things that are said and written and I try to focus on my game at Chelsea,” the midfielder said modestly. “We’ve had a great end to the season. It’s too early to talk about the Ballon d’Or now. I don’t think it’s necessary to say I deserve it, because there are still many games to play and there are there’s still a lot of time to go.”

The Frenchman has already tasted the prize once, when he finished in seventh place in the election in 2017. “That was already very nice to experience, but winning the prize is a different story of course. It is a great individual reward for the players. I see it as an award you can get for good performance over a season, but it’s not a goal or something I’m working on for me.” Kante claimed a leading role last weekend in the won final of the Champions League against Manchester City (0-1) and could count on many praise after the game.

At the press conference, Kanté also responded to the cuddly image that hangs around his person. “In the end, I’m just a normal boy,” Kanté said. “A player like so many others. No need to say I’m the nicest or the nicest. I’m just a player like everyone else. I think sometimes it’s exaggerated that people see me that way. It’s true that I I like to get along well with my teammates, to have good relationships with people I meet on the street and in football, but other than that there are more people like that in football. turn into.”