N’Golo Kanté’s favorite thing about football is the part where he wins

There’s a nice little profile on N’Golo Kante in today’s New York Times, written by Rory Smith, that sets out to confirm a few myths about the Chelsea midfielder, debunk a few others, and explain to the newspaper’s potentially uninitiated audience why Kante is the best in the business.

But we already knew that of course. Just as we knew that he drove a beat-up MINI (still does), that he’s a bit shy when it comes to public media or commercial appearances, and that he’s a ruthless winning machine that will destroy all those who stand in his way for his next trophy.

And he’ll probably do it with a smile on his face.

“My favorite thing is when we lift a trophy. Afterward, we can have a picture of us lifting a trophy. And that picture shows a lot of work, a lot of difficulty and a lot of sacrifice together. That is what it takes, to lift a trophy. From one picture, I can have many memories.”

“I am not a superstar or an ego. I am just the same as I always was: Someone who plays football. I have always been discreet in my life [but] there is no lack of confidence to be on the field, in front of many, many people.”

“[I take] satisfaction in recovering a ball, in protecting my team from an opponent’s attack. [But] the biggest satisfaction of all is to win.”

-N’Golo Kante; source: New York Times

We’re not worthy.

P.S.: Smith was interviewing Kante at the launch of the new adidas “Uniforia” ball, which will be used at Euro 2020. Michy Batshuayi was there, too, and he shared this hilarious video of Kante busting up laughing, Eden Hazard v. Branislav Ivanovic-style.