According to a video posted on The Late Run Podcast on Friday November 6, 2026, footballer Timo Werner said N’Golo Kanté was a game changer in his prime. He compared him to Lionel Messi, but in a different part of the game, which is defense. Werner spoke on The Late Run Podcast in Denver.

The hosts had asked whether he ever played with someone who seemed to feel no pressure before a match. Werner named Kanté. He said Kanté was already a World Cup winner when they played together and was the main man on the pitch.

Werner said Kanté sometimes seemed to go out on the pitch only to enjoy himself. He said Kanté was not there to do crazy things but to take the ball from everyone. He described playing with him as having a 12th man on the field.

In his words, Timo Werner said, “I mean, everybody in this team when we won the Champions League will tell you that, and we talk about Christian like that, we know both, both know him, and he will say the same, I think.

"N’Golo in his prime was a game changer. I think as Messi is a game changer, he was a game changer in a different part of the game, because if you can rely on a defensive player and you always have a guy who makes you as a team feel like you have one more guy in defense, that’s unbelievable,” he said.

Werner later returned to the Chelsea team that won the Champions League. He said the back five defended very well and that Kanté usually played in midfield with Jorginho or Kovacic. He said they did a great job of hunting opponents down.

He said that in knockout games the team was compact and knew how to defend. According to Werner, the side was not the best over a full season, but in one or two games it was unbelievable.

Watch headline quotes from (10:44–11:03).: