Football news - France boss Didier Deschamps' brilliant response to N'Golo Kante’s late arrival

The Chelsea midfielder was delayed by public transport as he left London and headed for his native country earlier this month ahead of the UEFA Nations League clash with Holland and friendly against Uruguay.

The French national team have provided their supporters with a YouTube compilation of the best bits from the November international break, and the head coach was in a good humour at the start of the reunion.

Kante arrived 45 minutes late to the French training camp at Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines, but after the energetic midfielder told Deschamps it was due to a train delay, the France boss responded: “But N’Golo, you are faster than a train.”

Kante featured in both international matches for his country with the 2-0 loss in the Netherlands followed by a 1-0 win over Uruguay in Paris.

The 27-year-old proved an instant success in England when he played an instrumental role in Leicester’s miraculous title-winning season, with the club’s then coach Steve Walsh underlining Kante’s importance when asked what he thought was the secret behind the unlikely success in 2016.

He said: “We play three in midfield – Danny Drinkwater in the middle and Kante either side.”

But the Frenchman has seen his influence decline this season having been taken out of his natural, destructive role.

The two-time Premier League title winner has been deployed in a more advanced position by Maurizio Sarri at Chelsea, with the tactic being widely criticised given the player’s strengths as a holding midfielder.

Jorginho arrived in the summer as Sarri’s man, and with the Italian preferring a 4-3-3 formation, Kante has been forced to play to the right of the three-man midfield.

He and Chelsea were left exposed in the 3-1 defeat by Tottenham, but the new £290,000-a-week, five-year contract he signed last week underlines the fact he remains a crucial part of the club’s long-term plans.