GOAL

Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta has paid tribute to Chelsea grafter N'Golo Kante - and said he would have loved to have played with him.

Iniesta, 34, is playing out the twilight of his glorious career with Japanese club Vissel Kobe and doesn't expect to get the opportunity to line up with the French World Cup-winner.

But he has praised the famously modest and selfless midfielder as the ideal engine-room sidekick.

"He's a player I'd like to have had in my team for many years," he told RMC Sport.

"He's not going to come to Japan, but he's definitely a player I love because of the work he does on the field and the confidence he has in his game.

"His mastery makes him the centrepiece of Chelsea and the France national team."

Kante, 27, joined Chelsea from Leicester on a five-year deal in summer of 2016 after helping the Foxes win the Premier League title.

He won the league with the Londoners in his first season at Stamford Bridge and last summer collected an FA Cup winner's medal, as well as being a key member of the French World Cup-winning team.

Kante recently revealed he had talks with PSG in the summer, but said: “There was no particular desire to go somewhere after the World Cup."