We’re sorry to announce that the Saudi Pro League has broken football’s nicest man | OneFootball

N’Golo Kante has a well-earned reputation as football’s nicest man, but a series of disputed refereeing decisions in Saudi Arabia have turned the smiling midfielder into the Incredible Hulk.

Kante moved to Al-Ittihad in 2023, winning both the Saudi Pro League and the King’s Cup, alongside winning back his place in the France squad for Euro 2024.

But he’s also one of those players admired across football’s tribal spectrum.

With his bashful personality off the pitch and quiet brilliance on it, Kante achieved the almost impossible feat of winning neutral affections while playing for Chelsea.

Which makes it even more remarkable that the Saudi Pro League seems to have snapped something in Kante’s brain that we never knew existed.

Vexed by a string of referring decisions against his team-mates, the 34-year-old metamorphosed into Roy Keane with an anguished yell in the official’s direction.

It was a stunning sight, akin to seeing a naked nun swear at pedestrians as they zoom down the High Street on a moped.

And a thought for the officials, too. Imagine your performance at work was so questionable that it upset the most placid guy in football history?

Kante helped Leicester City win the Premier League in the 2015-16 season before moving to Stamford Bridge and becoming one of the best midfielders in the club’s history.

Between 2016 and 2023, the France international won the Champions League, Premier League, Europa League and FA Cup at Stamford Bridge.

He was also named the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year and the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year for 2016-17, while playing a key role as France won the World Cup in 2018.

When his departure from English football was announced, Chelsea co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: “N’Golo’s impact and influence during his time at Chelsea cannot be overstated.

“His tireless performances in midfield contributed to several trophy wins and has guaranteed him a place in the club’s history.”

Thomas Tuchel, who brilliantly kept Kante at his peak for the 2021 Champions League triumph, was effusive in his praise for the man he called ‘NG’ while highlighting just how much Chelsea missed the midfielder when he was injured.

“I think he is our key, key, key player, but key, key, key players need to be on the pitch and if he plays only 40 per cent of the games, it is maybe a miracle that we arrive in third place. He is our Mo Salah, our (Virgil) van Dijk, our (Kevin) De Bruyne.

“He is simply that player. He is our Neymar, our Kylian Mbappe, he is the guy who makes the difference and if you only have him 40 per cent, it is a huge problem.”

However hard it may be to summon any great affection for the Saudi league, Kante is still admired by the majority of football supporters of all persuasions.

In this incident, Kante’s reputation is so angelic that it’s almost enough not to require any further context. The referee must have been wrong to elicit such a reaction from football’s nicest guy.