World Cup 2018: Top 5 contenders for the Golden Ball

3. N’golo Kante

The World Cup final is uncharted territory for the entire players of the finalist’s France and Croatia. And for N’golo Kante, it will be almost a very different surrounding as to the one he is familiar with, the Premier League. Probably, he won’t be so much fazed by it because he has no obvious weaknesses and his strengths include astonishing speed and incredible stamina. There is no doubt in the fact that Kante has been France’s most influential player at the World Cup, but he remains easily overlooked, particularly when his teammates generate more publicity.

The midfielder has been unstoppable during the whole tournament. He has been everywhere on the pitch running, tackling or intercepting a pass from an opponent. Kante might be one of the smallest players on the pitch (5 feet 6 inches), but he has always raised his game against all big players. He has not scored a single goal in the tournament but his all round game is clearly the best in the world. Kante has recovered the ball more times than any other player in his team (52) and outpassed his collegues (308 passes), as well as covering more distance than anybody. Without Kante France would not surely have reached the World Cup final. And if France go on to win the World Cup, he must be the golden ball winner for France.