Buck lays down gauntlet

CHELSEA chairman Bruce Buck expects Antonio Conte to have the club competing for trophies in his first season in charge, writes Simon Johnson.

Former Italy coach Conte has been working with the squad for only a fortnight as he bids to revitalise a club that finished 10th in the Premier League last term.

The Blues, who won the title in 2015, have brought in just two players so far this summer in striker Michy Batshuayi and midfielder N’Golo Kante but Buck believes they should be back among the elite quickly. He said: “At Chelsea there is a huge determination to make sure we are challenging for honours next season.

“We have gone through an unprecedented period of success since Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003.

“We have established ourselves as not only one of the biggest clubs in England but across Europe and have e won 13 pieces of major silverware in that time. We are eager to see that success continued.”