FURIOUS CONTE

Chelsea boss gives his players hairdryer treatment over defensive shambles

CHELSEA players were given a dressing down by manager Antonio Conte in the wake of their abject 3-0 Champions League defeat away against Roma.

The under-pressure Italian spared no member of the squad in his hairdryer blast at the club’s Cobham training ground on Thursday.

This included Kenedy, an unused substitute at the Stadio Olimpico, who was singled out because he yawned during Conte’s address.

According to the Daily Telegraph, David Luiz was also scolded for his reaction to being substituted during the 3-3 home draw with Roma a fortnight earlier.

Meanwhile, young Belgian Charly Musonda was told off for complaining about a lack of firstteam opportunities on Instagram amid interest from Arsenal.

Conte made it clear to his players that he was embarrassed by their shambolic defensive performance in the Italian capital, which delighted Roma fans as he is a former manager of their rivals Juventus.

He demanded an improvement in tomorrow’s Premier League showdown with Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United and the players took the criticism on board without complaint.

Conte made it clear he will not hesitate to drop any player who doesn’t meet the expected standards, demonstrating with his lecture that he retains control and doesn’t fear the sack.

Chelsea have already lost three Premier League matches this season and are nine points adrift of pace-setters Manchester City.

Kenedy’s behaviour represents an untimely setback for the young Brazilian, who had worked his way back into favour after humiliating the club with a series of ill-judged social media posts during their pre-season tour of China.

The 21-year-old was sent home from the tour but redeemed himself with an apology and had recently played and scored against Nottingham Forest in the League Cup.