Former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel compared Conor Gallagher to N’Golo Kante (Picture: Getty)
Conor Gallagher has responded to former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel after the German compared the midfielder to N’Golo Kante.
Kante, 31, has made 262 appearances for the Blues since he joined from Leicester City in 2016, helping the west London club win the Premier League, Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup, Club World Cup and Super Cup.
Gallagher, 22, broke into the Chelsea first team this season after an impressive loan at Premier League side Crystal Palace last term in which he was named the south London club’s Player of the Year, scoring eight goals across 34 games.
Kante and Gallagher started the 2022-23 campaign working under Tuchel before the German boss was sacked in September and replaced by Graham Potter.
During his time in charge of the club, Tuchel believed that Gallagher had similar attributes to Kante.
Gallagher, who is currently with the England squad in Qatar ahead of the World Cup, has now been quizzed about that comparison.
‘When he said it, it did make me laugh and surprise me a little bit,’ Gallagher said.
‘It’s obviously a massive compliment, even if I’m half the player Kante is because I feel like he’s the best midfielder in the world, probably still now when he’s fit.
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‘We are obviously different players. He probably gets around a bit more than me, he’s a bit sharper than me. So yeah, we’re different players.’
Chelsea should ‘bite the bullet’ by paying West Ham’s asking price for Declan Rice to replace Kante, according to former Tottenham midfielder Danny Murphy, who believes the Frenchman will leave the club at the end of the season.
Kante is out of contract at the end of the 2022-23 campaign and he recently rejected the club’s latest contract proposal, with the midfielder seeking a three-year deal to the two-year one on offer.
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‘We are obviously different players…’
