Former Wolves midfielder Jamie O'Hara believes Chelsea should ditch World Cup winner N'Golo Kante to sign West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice.
Reports claim Kante could be on his way out of Stamford Bridge with former Blues boss Antonio Conte and Inter Milan interested.
It's claimed Chelsea want £60m for Kante if they were to part ways with the French midfielder, and that might partly be because they are still keen on West Ham midfielder Rice.
According to O'Hara, it's a no-brainer to swap Kante for Rice, claiming the latter could be the next 'Michael Carrick'.
“If Chelsea have the opportunity to bring in Declan Rice now and get rid of N’Golo Kante, it has to happen,” O'Hara told talkSPORT.
“Is he an upgrade on Kante? 100 per cent!
“He is not the finished article but what you’ve got is the potential – he is 21 years of age, he is already playing for England and he is arguably the best defensive midfielder England have got right now.
“Alright, he has not done what N’Golo Kante has done but, in my mind, he is going to be a better player.
He gives more to the team in terms of the way Chelsea want to play, he receives it on the half turn and wants to play it forward.
“He’s like Michael Carrick. For me, he is the Michael Carrick that Manchester United had when they dominated and he was underrated at that club – that’s what Rice is.
“Declan Rice can go to Chelsea and be the Michael Carrick of that era.”
