Chelsea and Antonio Conte split over targets
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Matt Hughes, Deputy Football Correspondent
August 15 2017, 12:01am, The Times
Chelsea have spent £124million on signings this summer but Conte is not satisfied
Chelsea have spent £124million on signings this summer but Conte is not satisfied
DYLAN MARTINEZ/REUTERS
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Antonio Conte is in a stand-off with the Chelsea hierarchy over transfer targets, with the club reluctant to bow to the manager’s request to spend significant sums of money on experienced players with little resale value.
In addition to personal tension between Conte and some Chelsea staff brought about by what is perceived as his incessant demands, it is understood that there is also a philosophical difference between the Italian and the club as they seek to overhaul their squad.
Senior Chelsea sources have told The Times that while Conte is concerned only with assembling a squad capable of competing in the Premier League and Champions League this season, the board have a responsibility to plan for the medium and long term.
FIVE PLAYERS ITALIAN WANTS
Fernando Llorente
Club: Swansea City
Age: 32
Ivan Perisic
Club: Inter Milan
Age: 28
Virgil van Dijk
Club: Southampton
Age: 26
Antonio Candreva
Club: Inter Milan
Age: 30
Alex Sandro
Club: Juventus
Age: 26
Chelsea have shown a willingness to back Conte in the transfer market this summer by spending a combined £124 million on Álvaro Morata (£60 million from Real Madrid), Antonio Rüdiger (£29 million from Roma) and Tiémoué Bakayoko (£35 million from Monaco), and it is significant that none of the three is over 24.
In contrast, many of Conte’s remaining targets — Swansea City’s Fernando Llorente (age 32) and the Inter Milan pair, Antonio Candreva (30) and Ivan Perisic (28) — are nearer to the end of their careers and would therefore have little or no resale value. Chelsea have also signed ***** Caballero, the 35-year-old from Manchester City, as reserve goalkeeper, but he arrived on a free transfer.
Chelsea have also been slow to finalise proposed deals to sign Alex Sandro and Virgil van Dijk despite having been involved in negotiations with Juventus and Southampton respectively for several months. Both players are 26 and having been quoted fees of more than £60 million for each, Chelsea are concerned about whether either deal would represent value for money. Neither deal has been ruled out, with Conte and the club continuing a vigorous debate over their strategy.
Chelsea’s preferred transfer policy is to target young players whose market value will either remain stable or increase — the £41 million profit made from selling Oscar, who joined as a 20-year-old, to Shanghai SIPG in January being a prime example — but Conte has little interest in long-term planning.
Conte has proposed Leonardo Bonucci, 30, as a transfer target in each of the past two summers, but Chelsea refused to seriously pursue him, with the Italy defender instead leaving Juventus for AC Milan last month for £38 million. This clear difference in priorities is understood to be one of the reasons why Conte signed a two-year contract this summer rather than the four-year deal that he was initially offered, with both parties seemingly accepting that the manager’s stay at the club will be relatively short.
Chelsea have also been disappointed with the time and opportunities that Conte has given to the club’s home- grown players, despite being told that youth development was a significant part of the job during his initial contract talks 18 months ago.
Chelsea are reluctant to spend on players such as Llorente due to their lack of long-term value
Chelsea are reluctant to spend on players such as Llorente due to their lack of long-term value
There was little game-time for Chelsea’s academy players last season and this summer Conte has sanctioned the sales of Nathan Aké, to Bournemouth, and Nathaniel Chalobah, to Watford, as well as loan moves for Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Tammy Abraham, Kurt Zouma, Izzy Brown and Kasey Palmer, who all started for other clubs on Saturday when a depleted Chelsea were beaten by Burnley.
Chelsea’s desire to pursue young players with future resale value has been reinforced by a difficult transfer window, in which they took the gamble of selling Nemanja Matic to a direct rival in Manchester United to maximise a fee that could rise to as much as £40 million.
The club seem certain to make a significant loss on Diego Costa, the forward, who has made it clear he only wants to join Atletico Madrid, who are under a transfer embargo until January, having recently allowed John Terry, John Obi Mikel and Branislav Ivanovic to leave Stamford Bridge for nothing at the end of their contracts.
While Chelsea are frustrated by some of Conte’s demands, they will not be shocked.
They are aware that Conte behaved similarly every year at Juventus, his former club, where despite winning three successive Serie A titles the manager was viewed as extremely high maintenance
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