N’Golo Kante picked was once again the star for France as he picked up his second Man of the Match award, in his side’s 0-0 draw with the Netherlands at the European Championship on Friday night.
Kante has continued to show exactly why coach Didier Deschamps was so keen to name him in his squad for the Euros after a two-year exile from the international stage.
Just like in the game against Austria, Kante showed he still possesses all the old instincts to sniff out danger, keep the midfield – and as a consequence the France team – ticking over and act as an impenetrable shield against any Netherlands threat.
The former Chelsea midfielder last played for France in a Uefa Nations League game against Denmark in June 2022 before making his comeback in the friendly against Luxembourg earlier this month.
“N’Golo is still out there running,” Deschamps quipped in his post-match press conference on Friday.
“But he doesn’t only run. He also has a capacity to carry the ball up the field, which is important to complement our other players in midfield so we have variety and we are not always predictable.”
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As impressive as his ball-winning and boundless energy has been against Austria and the Netherlands, the fact Kante has been France’s star so far tells its own story.
France have managed just one goal in their opening two games and even that came via Austria defender Maximilian Wober.
Star player Kylian Mbappe’s broken nose against Austria, which ruled him out on Friday, has not helped.
But more is expected of a forward line that also boasts Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud, Marcus Thuram, Ousmane Dembele and Kingsley Coman.
Despite France having an abundance of talent, Mbappe remains the inspiration to complement Kante’s perspiration that would make them the team to beat at Euro 2024.
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