West Ham have easy response to any Mohamadou Kante approach amid Ligue 1 interest

West Ham United midfielder Mohamadou Kante is attracting interest from within his home country of France.

The 20-year-old talent may be feeling disappointed about his lack of game time in the season just past.

Kante played just 11 Premier League matches for the Hammers, with none of those coming as starts, and averaged just 10 minutes per appearance.

However, reports have now been shared that Kante is on the shortlist of many Ligue 1 sides.

Ahead of next season, the Irons have an easy answer to any approaches to sign Kante, despite his lack of minutes.

Why West Ham must reject any Mohamdou Kante approaches

West Ham needs to make sales, and roughly bring in £150million worth of them at that.

It could lead to the temptation to let Kante leave, with the Hammers valuing him at £15m-£20m according to The Athletic.

The football publication is also where the reports of Ligue 1 interest have emerged from.

Manager Nuno Espirito Santo also reportedly blocked Kante from heading out on loan in January, so perhaps that suggests he is set for a larger role next season.

The drop in quality could prove vital to the 20-year-old's development, and with Mateus Fernandes linked with a move away, he could have a route into the first team.

After only signing him in 2024 and then sending him on loan for the 2024-2025 season, giving up on him this soon, and selling would make little sense.

The easy answer is to simply tell interested parties that he is not for sale this summer.

West Ham academy manager's words show the true quality of Kante

Those who have worked extensively with Kante will likely tell you the same thing.

Kante is an exceptional athlete, and it was no surprise that after early performances with the under-21s in 2025-2026, he was brought into the first team quite quickly.

Academy manager Kenny Brown said: "Physically, he’s an athlete…You’ve got to have energy, cover ground and have presence, but he’s more than that. He’s got real ability on the ball and can score goals."

Next season should be a breakthrough campaign for Kante, and while Championship football can be arduous work, he is certainly adept at dealing with what is ahead.

It is up to the midfielder to showcase that in pre-season, or else Nuno's wishes to keep Kante could be ignored in order to ease financial worries.

If an offer of £15m-£20m does arrive, it would be hard to reject for a midfielder who did not start a single Premier League match.