Leicester City football chief Steve Walsh admits he pushed to sign N'Golo Kante from SC Caen last summer.

Described as the best midfielder in this season's Premier League by former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, Kante's ball-winning skills were key to the fast, counter-attacking style that has brought the title to the King Power Stadium.

The midfielder arrived shortly after the appointment of Ranieri, after Walsh persistently urged the Italian to secure a deal by telling him: "Kante, Claudio, Kante."

"We did have that conversation," Walsh told BBC Radio 5 live. "But obviously he took my advice, brought him in and the rest, as they say, is history.

"People think we play with two in midfield, and I say 'No. We play with Danny Drinkwater in the middle and we play with Kante either side, giving us essentially 12 players on the pitch.'"