AdminThe West Ham youngster’s afternoon at Millwall had almost everything. Introduced at half-time with West Ham 2-0 down, the 21-year-old helped transform the midfield, scored the goal that sparked the comeback and then saw red after losing possession and bringing down Kyrell Lisbie.
The dismissal was a blemish, but it should not overshadow an encouraging second-half display.
For perhaps the first time in several weeks, Nuno Espirito Santo used the midfielder in a role that suited his strengths rather than asking him to solve a problem elsewhere.
Mohamadou Kante has previously been used as a No.10 and on the left, but neither position has looked completely natural. At The Den, operating centrally in Nuno’s second-half 3-5-2, he looked far more comfortable.
West Ham finally allowed Kante to attack from midfield.
His influence was immediate. He almost scored shortly after the restart when Filip Marschall spilled Jarrod Bowen’s effort before eventually finding the bottom corner from around 25 yards in the 74th minute. Six minutes later, Konstantinos Mavropanos equalised.
The contrast with Bolton was clear. Used as the attacking midfielder behind Pablo, Kante worked hard but struggled to provide the creativity expected from a traditional No.10.
Against Millwall, he was allowed to arrive from deeper positions, using his physicality, energy and direct running to threaten the penalty area.
With three goals in 377 Championship minutes, Kante’s profile suggests a box-to-box role could suit him best.
West Ham may finally have found the answer: Kante does not need to become a No.10 or winger. He may simply need the freedom to become a very good box-to-box midfielder.
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