N’Golo Kante has acknowledged that he and his Chelsea teammates must ‘sacrifice a lot’ if they are to get back on track under Maurizio Sarri.
The Blues are under new management following the summer departure of Antonio Conte, who could only guide the Blues to a fifth-placed finish in the Premier League last season.
Sarri has arrived at Stamford Bridge and brings with him a different playing style and a new system, which will free up Kante’s role and allow him to pop up in more advanced positions.
Speaking in the wake of his rare strike in the 3-0 win against Huddersfield Town at the weekend, the World Cup-winning midfielder admitted that it is now a case of starting afresh.
“It’s a new season, we all start from zero again, and that is the way our job is,” he told The Mirror.
“Whatever you did in the past is quickly forgotten. We all have to go again and prove we are worthy of our position. So, yeah, hopefully, I am able to do that again.
“Even during the holidays, we were thinking and talking about how to adapt. It will require a lot of sacrifice from us all, so that is why I have to continue moving forward as a player.
“I have worked with different managers in the past and different systems. The best way to always keep your position [in the team] is to remain focused and have the same attitude towards everyone. So that is what I am going to try to do again this season.”
As well as scoring against Huddersfield, Kante made 53 passes with a success rate of 84.9%, touched the ball 70 times, made one tackle, two clearances and two interceptions.