Chelsea FC : Conte's relentless pursuit of players continues

Antonio Conte has expressed a desire for more players in January (Picture: Getty)
 

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has pleaded with the board to spend money in the 

coming transfer window. The manager 

has repeatedly voiced his disappointment with the summer business and lamented a 

desperately thin squad. And the squad limitations mean Conte and his players find 

themselves third in the table and eleven points behind Premier League leaders Manchester 

City. 

 Chelsea have struggled to 

compete with injuries to big players this season and Conte urged the Blues board to 

sanction a January spending spree. He said: ‘Manchester City’s path is incredible, no? I 

think Manchester City in this season is a strong team. 

(Picture: REUTERS)

(Picture: Getty) 

‘Also last season, Manchester City were a fantastic team. ‘Then, after the transfer market, 

they bought their first targets and then they have improved a lot. ‘They can do this also in 

January maybe and in the future. For this reason, we must be worried because if we want 

to 

compete with Manchester City we have to work and make the best decisions in the market. 

 ‘If you want to reach 

something important it’s very important to have a good balance.’ Chelsea managed to 

rescue a point against Liverpool on Saturday, but fell further behind City as the Sky Blues 

came from behind to beat Huddersfield on Sunday. Conte believes Chelsea will fall further 

behind should the club fail to act in the transfer window. 

The chances are that City will add to their squad in January with Pep Guardiola eyeing a 

centre-back after an 

injury to John Stones. Chelsea spent a significant amount of money in the summer on 

Alvaro Morata, Danny Drinkwater, Antonio Rudiger and Tiemoue Bakayoko, but Conte 

missed out on several top targets. They included striker Romelu Lukaku, who joined 

Manchester United, midfielders Antonio Candreva and Ross Barkley and centre-back Virgil 

van Dijk.