Unpopular opinion: N'Golo Kante now the disposable link in Chelsea's midfield

It feels like kicking a puppy to suggest it, but N'Golo Kante has really underwhelmed in this new look Chelsea side under Frank Lampard.

Much was made of Maurizio Sarri's decision to deploy the Frenchman in a more advanced position last season, with Jorginho used as a deep lying playmaker, but it's something that Lampard has persisted with on many occasions.

While Kante has impressed at times with his forward runs and movement off the ball, his level of performance has been far less consistent than when he was tasked with protecting the defence first and foremost.

While there are far more strings to the 28-year-old's bow than just his ball winning ability, that set him apart from any other player in the Premier League and arguably the world for a time. The frequency with which he made tackles was remarkable, but perhaps even more so was the infrequency with which he committed fouls.

In his new role both of those traits have changed to such a degree that Kante has now conceded a foul for every tackle that he makes. He's averaged 2.4 tackles and fouls per 90 each, with the latter now the most of players to start at least ten Premier League games.

Said tackle per foul rate has fallen almost year on year since his time at Leicester, averaging a monumental 4.1 at that time. That figure had all but halved last season (2.1) and has halved again this, pointing towards a dramatic drop off in the timing of Kante's tackling.

His importance to Chelsea has undoubtedly waned as a consequence, and while the fan favourite - even to the neutral - has had his injury problems this season, he's no longer an automatic pick. Said injuries could well have had a more detrimental effect on Kante's performances than the club expected, and certainly shouldn't be overlooked when questioning his form.

However, his impact on the team's results this season is certainly a worrying one, with Chelsea winning just five of the 15 matches he has started compared to seven of the ten he has not. Only former Chelsea defensive midfielder Oriol Romeu has had a bigger negative effect on his side's win ratio of all players to have both started and not started more than five Premier League matches, with the Blues' win rate dropping 36.7 per cent with Kante in the starting XI.

In fact, the Blues have dropped just two of a possible 24 points from the eight league matches that Kante has missed altogether.

As such the two time Premier League winner can no longer be considered in the discussion as to the best ball winning midfielders in the world. He's not the best in England as things stand, with Wilfred Ndidi and Fabinho unquestionably performing better this season despite having injury problems of their own. Meanwhile, Casemiro is having the best season of his career with Real Madrid.

One would hope that Kante's regression is more a consequence of the injuries he has suffered and a subsequent lack of fitness then a natural downturn in form at the age of 28. At his best the Chelsea star is still a force to be reckoned with, that's for sure, but this season, N'Golo Kante has been nowhere near his best.