France midfielder N'Golo Kante revealed he wanted to join Marseille from Caen instead of heading to the Premier League.
Kante, 25, ended up at Leicester City, winning the title before joining Chelsea, where he is on track to repeat the feat.
But the midfielder said he felt making a switch to Marseille may have been better for him, before he ended up in England.
"Among the clubs that most wanted to recruit me were Marseille and Leicester," Kante told Canal +.
"I thought I had to go through a stage in France. I remember the generation of [Mamadou] Niang, [Franck] Ribery and [Samir] Nasri and it was a team that I liked, especially in the Champions League."
A 14-time France international, Kante's rise appears set to continue with the PFA Players' Player of the Year Award.
But the humble Kante said he had several team-mates who were worthy of the prize.
"There are quite a few players in the Premier League who deserve this award," he said.
"There is [Eden] Hazard, Diego Costa and David Luiz in my team."
Chelsea are 10 points clear atop the Premier League, their next outing a clash against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
