Willian says he would not have stayed at Chelsea under Antonio Conte

Chelsea winger Willian says he would not have stayed at the Stamford Bridge outfit had former head coach Antonio Conte still been in charge.

Conte won the 2016-17 Premier League title with the Blues but was sacked in July after finishing fifth.

“The (new) manager tells us to play, to enjoy ourselves on the pitch,” Willian said.

“Is it fun to play this way? I think so. We have a lot of players with quality up front, like Eden Hazard and Pedro. Players like that want to play football.”

Willian, 30, had been linked with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United this summer but committed his future to the Blues in early August.

Chelsea are at home to Arsenal in their next league fixture on Saturday, and Willian added: “Now we have a different style, that’s why we can create problems for Arsenal.

“Of course, it will be a special game against Arsenal because it is a derby. It is always difficult against them. We have to prepare well during the week.” Rafael Nadal dropped out of the Western & Southern Open on Sunday night, scuttling a reunion of the “Big Four.”

Nadal withdrew a few hours after he won his fifth title of the year in Toronto, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 7-6 (4). Instead of playing more gruelling matches in Cincinnati, he’ll take a week to get some rest and get ready for the US Open.

“No other reason than personally taking care of my body and trying to keep as healthy as I feel now,” Nadal said in a statement.

And so the “Big Four” reunion will have to wait for at least a few more weeks. Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray haven’t played in the same tournament in more than a year. With Nadal’s withdrawal, Federer becomes the top player in