The London club have been in irrepressible form since a change in playing system, but the Italian manager wants more
Since Antonio Conte altered the formation into a 3-4-3, the results have been nothing short of extraordinary for the London based club. Since the 3-0 defeat to cross-town rivals Arsenal, Chelsea have gone on to win their next five league games on the trot, scoring 16 goals while conceding none in the process.
This impressive form has helped the club soar to the second place, only one point behind league leaders Liverpool. Mind you, just a few weeks back, Chelsea were eight points off the top, so the turnaround in form, largely thanks to the formation tweak, has been very commendable.
But Antonio Conte, being the perfectionist he is, wants to make the team even better and has put together a shortlist of players, who could make significant difference to the team. The manager has the full backing of Roman Abramovich, and the club is ready to splash money for their intended targets in the upcoming winter transfer window, claims reputed English newspaper, Telegraph.
The newspaper reports, one of Conte’s prime target is Junvetus defender Leonardo Bonucci, a player t he head-coach has extensively worked with at club as well as international level. The defender was heavily linked with Manchester City and Chelsea in the summer but the Italian centre-back stayed put. It is believed only a world-record fee will tempt Juventus to consider selling their prized asset, but Conte has been given the green light by Roman.
Telegraph adds, in-case Bonucci’s pursuit become untenable, Roma’s Antonio Rudiger and Burnley’s Michael Keane are Conte’s back-up options to shore up the defense.
While the switch to 3-4-3 has been an undeniable success until now, Chelsea were knocked out of the FA Cup by a struggling West Ham side. Taking that into account, Conte wants to have the flexibility to deploy a 4-2-4 system as and when required, which is said to be his other favoured formation.
Hence, the Italian manager wants to add a midfielder to the roster with Roma’s Radja Nainggolan and Inter Milan’s Marcelo Brozovic his preferred candidates. The former was part of much speculation in the summer, with Roma reported to have rejected a €35 million bid by Chelsea.
After an indifferent start, Chelsea have recovered to outline their title credentials with their recent spell of form. After the embarrassment of last season, Roman Abramovich would be hoping for a finish around the top come May. Don’t be surprised if Chelsea are among one of the more busier clubs in January, in a bid to strengthen for the title run.
