Talented, happy and humble: N’Golo Kante is one of the nicest guys on the planet, never mind in football. You will struggle to meet anybody who doesn’t like the man.
You will equally struggle to find a picture of the Frenchman when he hasn’t got a smile as wide as his face. He has reason to be happy too of course, having won two Premier Leagues, one Europa League, one FA Cup and the small matter of a World Cup in just the last five years.
His kindness has been well documented too, but not because he wants it to be, because everyone else wants to show just how nice he really is, even if he doesn’t.
The list of nice things, it seems, is endless, with the Chelsea midfielder constantly giving more and more reasons for people to love him.
Today (Sunday) on Kante’s birthday, to celebrate, we have complied a list of just seven stories that, if you don’t already for some bizarre reason, will no doubt make you fall in love with the Frenchman.
Playing FIFA with an Arsenal Fan
As we said, it is not just Chelsea fans that like Kante. It seems that supporters of clubs – even ones that are supposed to rival the side – like him too.
Kante met an Arsenal fan at a mosque and decided to go back home with him to casually watch match of the day and play a spot of FIFA, showing just how down to earth the guy really is.
Driving to training in his Mini
It is quite a common thing to catch superstar players arriving to training in their flashy sports cars with personalised plates… not Kante; He turns up in a second-hand Mini Cooper.
He still owns that same car that he first got when arriving in England to play for Leicester in 2015. The car is thought to be worth £10,345.
Jogging to training
And when he didn’t have his car available to him, Kante wanted to jog to training. He didn’t think to get an uber and he was probably to shy to ask a teammate for a lift. No, Kante wanted to jog.
It was Jamie Vardy who famously revealed that the entire Leicester's squad once had to convince Kante that he should just drive to training, with the Frenchman convinced he could just run. Let’s face it… he probably could.
He is honest with everything… even taxes
The Sun revealed that even though Kante could have taken payment from an offshore company that would have reportedly saved him around £870,000 a year, the "increasingly concerned" Frenchman instead reached agreement with a British company.
Paying taxes, of course, shouldn’t be actively celebrated but such is the dark industry that Kante continues to shine a bright light in.
Too shy to ask to hold the World Cup
Perhaps the most famous case of them all. After winning a trophy, every player has their moment to celebrate and get that feeling of lifting the cup. Except Kante was too shy to ask his fellow international players to hold it.
Despite being one of their most influential players in the tournament, Stephen Nzonzi had to urge his French team-mates to let him get his hands on the most sought-after prize in all of football.
Even when he tries to cheat… it’s funny
Believe it or not. He isn’t perfect! Though, Kante’s dark side isn’t avoiding tax, having affairs or missing training after a long night out… his dark side is hilariously cheating at UNO.
In a clip captured below, Kylian Mbappe can be seen accusing Kante of cheating in the card game during a flight. After finding out that he had been cheating, the players – Mbappe most of all – erupted into laughter.
Showing up at a Chelsea fan's wedding
After missing out on Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Sheffield United, he took the opportunity to impress a Chelsea fan by showing up at his daughter’s wedding.
It wasn’t just a quick show to take a few photos to prove how nice he was either. Apparently, he stayed for a while after the ceremony, taking the time to speak to all the guests and make an incredibly special day, even more memorable. What a guy.