Chelsea star N'Golo Kante is reportedly keen to stay in west London, although the failure of contract extension talks to progress has left Saudi Arabian sides on tenterhooks to tempt the Frenchman into a move. 

Kante is widely regarded as among the leading central midfielders in the world, but with his current deal at Stamford Bridge up this summer, his future remains clouded in uncertainty. 

The 32-year-old is reported to have been subject of interest from Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad, with the latter club's representatives believed to have travelled to London to hold discussions with the player's entourage. 

And the Saudi Pro League champions are set to offer the Frenchman a sizeable upgrade on his current wages, with a reported £86million proposal including image rights and commercial deals, with Al-Nassr also interested.

Al-Ittihad have already pulled off the sizeable coup of landing Karim Benzema on a three-year deal worth £258m, after the Ballon d'Or winner left Real Madrid after 14 trophy-laden seasons. 

Chelsea are reportedly in talks with N'Golo Kante over a contract extension although little progress is thought to have been made

As a result, the French striker could be set to reunite with his international team-mate Kante in Saudi Arabia, if the midfielder is unable to agree new terms with Chelsea.  

'Saudi emissaries, in London to present an official proposal to N’Golo Kante,' tweeted Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano.

'Salary bid could reach £86m (€100m) inclusive of the image rights & commercial deals.

'Al Ittihad and Al Nassr, on it.

'Kante always gave priority to new deal at Chelsea — it was close in March.

Previous reports stated that talks between Al-Ittihad and Kante's camp started several days ago and the aim is for an agreement to be reached as soon as possible.

With Cristiano Ronaldo already at Al-Nassr, there could be further stars heading to Saudi Arabia this summer. Lionel Messi, for instance, is reportedly linked with a big-money switch to Al-Hilal, potentially joining his fellow Ballon d'Or winners. 

Kante first joined the Blues in 2016, winning back-to-back Premier League titles with two different clubs in the process, having done so with Leicester in 2015-16.

Despite his stature within the game, it is unclear whether he will be part of Mauricio Pochettino's plans next season. 

Having invested heavily in recent transfer windows - nearly £600million since Todd Boehly took over last summer - the club's ranks are now bloated to the tune of around 30 players. 

As such, a number of current stars are anticipated to be leaving, including the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Edouard Mendy, Mateo Kovacic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Cesar Azpilicueta. 

Should Kante leave, the Blues would be left with few players capable of playing in a deeper midfield role, with Kovacic linked with a switch to Treble-chasers Manchester City. 

With a view to potentially plugging this gap, the club have reportedly been chasing Brighton's highly-regarded Ecuadorian international Moises Caicedo. 

However, with no European football to offer, they perhaps come in at a disadvantage against the likes of Arsenal in the race for the 21-year-old's services.