Conte backs 23 year old Chelsea midfielder to become another Kante
Soccer Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea - London, Britain - August 20, 2017 Tottenham's Eric Dier in action with Chelsea's Tiemoue Bakayoko REUTERS/Dylan Martinez EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte believes Tiemoue Bakayoko can evolve into a complete player and emulate the progress of team mate N’Golo Kante.
Speaking after the pair played alongside each other in the 2-1 victory over Leicester City on Saturday, Conte praised the 23 year old (although he gets his age wrong) but he believes there is still a lot more improvement to come from the midfielder in the coming years. He is quoted by the Daily Star as saying:
“Don’t forget that Baka is only 22, younger than N’Golo. He is very strong without the ball and now he can improve a lot with the ball in the same way N’Golo has. Every player can improve. You must have the will to work and improve. Until the end of your career you can always improve.”
Bakayoko has looked impressive in his outings for Chelsea so far since his £40m switch from Monaco in the summer. It is a credit to his natural fitness that he has started two of the first four Premier League fixtures of the campaign despite missing pre-season because of a knee injury.
The partnership of Bakayoko and Kante is likely to become a mainstay in Conte’s side through the course of the season, especially in tough away fixtures, and in matches against top six clubs.