It looks like Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kanté is on the verge of leaving adidas for PUMA as the 2018 World Cup winner switched into a blackout version of the PUMA Future 2.1 in training on Tuesday.
Kanté has been wearing the adidas X 18.1 this season on the back of his successful World Cup campaign in Russia that led to him being named in the FIFPRO World XI this week. September would be an unusual time for a boot deal to expire (they normally run out near the end of a domestic season) but Kanté looks to be in talks with PUMA ahead of a potential switch away from the Three Stripes.
The 2018 FIFPro World XI was made up exclusively of adidas and Nike players, so PUMA will no doubt be looking to break into the elite by adding more muscle to their squad. They've already got attacking abundance in Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann, Sergio Aguero, and a midfielder of Kanté's calibre and popularity would be a solid addition to their ranks.
But why would Kanté leave adidas? Fair point. He's played his greatest seasons in the brand, winning the Premier League with Leicester and Chelsea, and the World Cup with France. It could be a simple case of PUMA offering more lucrative terms, or a number of more complicated reasons. Whatever the case, it's early days and we wouldn't expect any concrete decisions to be made any time soon. Expect Kanté to remain in the adidas X 18.1 until anything official is announced.
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