Leicester fans who booed Kante shamed themselves - and embarrassed the club they love

On Saturday afternoon, Leicester City's supporters showed the ugly side of fandom as they watched a match involving N'Golo Kante for the first time since he left the club in the summer, the French midfielder having earned himself a big money move to Chelsea.

Did they offer him warm applause as befits a man who was absolutely critical in orchestrating the club's finest hour – aka the Premier League title last season?

Did they chant his name throughout, delighted to see a 'boy done good'?

They did not. They booed.

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Maybe some of them thought they were being funny, but there's little doubt that at least some of the fans were genuine in their vitriol – their anger aimed at a young man who has done nothing more or less than grab an opportunity to further his career and boost his bank balance.

No doubt plenty of Leicester fans understand that he's made the sort of career move that any of them might have made themselves (albeit at a very different financial level).

But those who don't, and who booed, have fundamentally misunderstood the nature of their glorious season last year.

It was, quite simply, footballing alchemy: a blend of base metals coming together to make sporting gold for all involved. It was a metaphorical bolt of lightning, and it was never going to strike twice.

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Whether Kante stayed or not, there is simply no way that Leicester would have carried on their winning ways. Many of the finest teams in football history have struggled to win back-to-back titles, and with the money that Leicester's rivals were spending the cards were stacked against them in a manner unparalleled in the history of sport.

Kante was quite right to move on, as would any of the other stars of 2015-16 have been if they had gone as well – but we can understand why most chose to stick around and enjoy the afterglow of the Premier League's best-ever party.

One thing that none of them believed, however, is that there would or could be a repeat performance. The likes of Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez signed up for a season-long victory lap, picking up £100,000-a-week as they did so, and enjoying the chance to pick up a few interesting passport stamps in the Champions League.

They'd no doubt have hoped to have another run at making the top four; but they won't have expected a thing.

Those booing fans, though? They obviously DID expect a repeat. Booing a former player in these circumstances demonstrates an almost grotesque sense of entitlement, suggesting as it does that Kante had no moral right to pursue his career in any manner that he saw fit.

He wasn't Leicester born and bred. He hadn't been at the club for many years. He hadn't been a two-faced badge-kisser who'd promised one thing and delivered another, or even a player whose loose-lipped agent dragged him through the mire and made him look excessively mercenary. He's just a 25-year-old lad going about his business, making the most of what he knew would be the greatest footballing and financial opportunity of his life. And he got pilloried regardless.

Those fans who did boo should hang their heads in shame – for not only have they embarrassed themselves, they've embarrassed their club as well. Leicester were the most popular champions for years, a tag they earned by being a bunch of lovable rogues who charmed the planet. Any more behaviour like that, and neutrals will be only too glad to see them fade away – or even go down to the Championship, a fate far from out of the question for a club with just eight points from eight matches.

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As for Kante's reaction? He put his head down, doubled his work rate, and ended up as man of the match with a quite superb all-round display which showed just how much Leicester missed him.

Until Saturday, Kante probably missed Leicester as well. After what happened at Stamford Bridge, we doubt he'll spare them a second thought.