Transfer news: Ten Hag now eyeing ambitious move to bring 'world class' star to Man Utd - report

Manchester United are lining up an ambitious swoop for Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante, according to a report from The Mirror. 

The Red Devils have recently been linked with a host of defensive midfielders such as Declan Rice and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic as incoming manager Erik ten Hag prepares to oversee plenty of squad changes at Old Trafford.

Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic are both on their way out in the coming weeks, leaving just Scott McTominay and Fred as senior recognised central midfield options.

However, it now appears as though one serial winner could be on the Dutchman’s list of targets…

As per The Mirror, United are believed to see the 31-year-old Frenchman as an ‘attainable target’ this summer despite currently plying his trade for direct domestic rivals.

It’s claimed that Ten Hag ‘wants’ to bring Kante to Manchester in order to ‘kick-start’ a new era at Carrington under his stewardship.

The report also claimed that the incoming Red Devils manager believes that the 2018 World Cup winner, who was hailed as ‘world class’ by former Chelsea team-mate Cesc Fabregas, still has the ‘hunger’ to succeed should he arrive at Old Trafford.

At 31 and with injury issues becoming increasingly prevalent in recent seasons, Kante may not be the ideal addition to freshen up the Manchester United ranks.

Whilst the Frenchman remains a high-quality operator when fit and available, earning an outstanding 7.13 Sofascore rating whilst making 2.2 tackles per game across 24 Premier League outings this season – this move may have come too late and could ultimately prove detrimental to what is supposed to be a rebuild at Old Trafford.

However, the player is out of contract in 2023 and Chelsea are currently embroiled in off-field turmoil,