West Ham handed £20m transfer blow over ex-Chelsea star

West Ham have been handed a blow following previous links with the former Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante after Fabrizio Romano shared an update on the Frenchman’s transfer situation.

Earlier this summer, it was reported by The Guardian that the Irons had hoped to bring back the ex-Blues star to the Premier League and negotiations between the two parties were said to be ‘ongoing’. Kante moved to his current team in the Saudi Pro League in 2023 following a seven year spell at Stamford Bridge and while he is said to be happy with Al Ittihad, the 33-year-old has not shutdown a potential London return.

The Irons had been keen to bring in a new defensive midfielder after Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips endured such a disappointing stint on loan, but they have not been the only club eyeing up a potential bid for the former Leicester City star.

Most recently, Atletico Madrid were said to have ‘opened talks with Kante’s camp’ over a potential deal. The La Liga side had hoped to sign Chelsea star Conor Gallagher but the England international has since headed back to London following ‘negotiation difficulties’.

Reports from Relevo, via the Daily Mail, now indicate that Kante - who would be available at a much lower price than £33.7m required for Gallagher - is in talks with Atleti but both the Irons and the Spanish side have been sent a strong warning from the Saudi Pro League side who are evidently desperate to keep hold of the French World Cup winner.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Italian sports journalist wrote: “Al Ittihad stance on N’Golo Kante remains the same after West Ham and Atletico Madrid links. Not for sale, this is Al Ittihad’s position.”

Back in July, reports indicated that any interested party would need to pay at least £20 million to acquire the midfielder but if Romano’s report is to be believed, there appears to be no amount of money that will enable him to depart Jeddah.