CONTE: PLAYING EVERY THREE DAYS BURNS OUT BLUES
From the toast of Europe after beating Atletico, to successive defeats in the Premier League. Chelsea need to regain their swagger... quickly
ANTONIO CONTE has once again warned the Chelsea board his squad is not strong enough. The Italian (left) will throw Alvaro Morata straight back into the Champions League fray against Roma tonight, as he continues to be unimpressed with Michy Batshuayi. Conte also claimed more of his top stars could join N’golo Kante and Victor Moses on the sidelines because he is having to play them so much. The Chelsea boss said: “We have to play every three days and it’s not simple. Also because, in this moment, we are ‘thin’ and have to always play the same players. “Honestly, there is a risk of other injuries. I hope not.” And Conte added: “The problem is we are playing always the same players. “And also we have players in our team who are not used to playing three games in a week. “When you have a lot of games, you need to rotate players. If this is not possible, I have to take risks.”
TWO weeks ago Chelsea were the toast of their fans, having pulled off the club’s finest European result in years. A fortnight on, the Blues go into tonight’s Champions League clash against Roma needing victory to prevent a drama turning into a crisis. That win over Atletico Madrid looked a world away last Saturday, as Antonio Conte’s title holders fell to a monster upset at Crystal Palace. And Manchester City bossed their match against the west Londoners so much, before the international break, it was frightening. The politics too have reemerged, with Conte (above) publicly voicing his concerns over the lack of squad depth he warned us about previously. Those shortcomings are starting to bite. His carefully chosen words yesterday appeared to lay the blame squarely at the feet of the Chelsea board, conveniently forgetting he opted to sell Nathaniel Chalobah and loan out Tammy Abraham. Those tensions, kept in check after a tough summer and seven wins in eight, are threatening to come to the boil again. So while, in theory, tonight’s match looks straightforward against an injury-ravaged Roma side at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea simply cannot afford to slip up. Defender Marcos Alonso summed up the challenge succinctly. “We need to be doing well in this competition and getting closer to what we want,” he said. “Finishing the group as the first team. Then to get back to winning ways in the Premier League. “We’ve lost a lot of points already. We cannot lose any more games.” Their rivals, otherwise, will smell blood. A confidence will build that, if Palace and Roma can do it, maybe others can too. Watford would go to Stamford Bridge on Saturday with an even greater sense of belief, having seen off Arsenal. Chelsea need the three points tonight. In fact, win home and away against the Italians, and they are through to the knockout stages. Lose and, from a position of strength, they will find themselves in danger of joining the Gunners in the Europa League. No wonder there has been no day off after that Selhurst Park shocker. “I’ve seen the team working very well in these couple of days,” Alonso added. “We’ve recovered very well and hopefully we’ll produce a much better game. “We’ve not had time off. We’ve been recovering and preparing for this. The team are ready.” N’golo Kante remains on the sidelines. The France midfielder won’t be back until next month. Cesc Fabregas will continue to deputise in midfield. Davide Zappacosta will also come in for another of Conte’s hamstring victims, Victor Moses. Michy Batshuayi, however, has had his chance and failed to take it. Alvaro Morata (inset), only just back from injury, will be thrown straight in, with his movement far superior to Batshuayi’s statuesque display at Selhurst Park.