Manchester United News: Jose Mourinho wants to get Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante

It has got to a point where just anyone would do for Manchester United. It seems a bit strange that a club which spent a world record fee for Paul Pogba and £75m on Romelu Lukaku in two successive summer transfer windows are struggling to sign players.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has tried to go after players but they just simply haven’t been able to get the deals done in time.

Latest reports point out that Mourinho wanted to sign Chelsea midfield ace N’Golo Kante as well. United ended up with Fred, who was signed from Shakhtar Donetsk, but Kante was the primary target to bolster the midfield.

The source of the story is Axel Witsel’s agent. Witsel recently signed with Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund, but he too had the chance to sign for Manchester United. Speaking on Mourinho’s targets, Witsel’s agent Paul Stefani revealed, “I know from a very good source that Mourinho said he wanted Witsel, but not in the first place. N’Golo Kante topped his list.”

Stefani went on to add that Witsel was better off at Dortmund because of the competition he would have had to go through at Old Trafford.

“There were other candidates. Manchester United wanted him, Napoli too.

“But I have told Axel: ‘At Dortmund you are the number one, at Manchester you are one of many… and at Napoli too’,” he added.

Kante has returned to the Chelsea squad after lifting the World Cup with France and played against Lyon in the club’s last preseason game. Witsel, on the other hand, signed a four-year contract that will keep him at Westfalenstadion until 2022.

This will of course leave a bitter taste in the mouth if you’re a Manchester United fan. The club eventually signed Fred, but he is likely to take a while to settle in at Old Trafford.