A year ago Chelsea were the defending Premier League champions, but after a dismal 2014/15 campaign, new boss Antonio Conte wants to blow everything up telling Blues owner Roman Abramovich that they need FIVE more players if he wants Chelsea to compete for the Premier League title this season.
According to The Mirror, Conte, Abramovic, director Marina Granovskaia and technical director Michael Emenalo were involved in what was described as “a stormy two-hour summit” after Rapid Vienna’s 2-0 win against the Blues in Austria last weekend.
Chelsea have already spent £63 million this summer signing Michy Batshuayi and N’Golo Kante, but Conte wants another more help in defence and up front. Defenders Leonardo Bonucci, Kalidou Koulibaly and Kostas Manolas have been suggested as potential defensive arrivals while the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Alvaro Morata have been linked to strengthen the club’s attack.
Chelsea failed to invest sufficiently last summer and Abramovich is reportedly ready to back Conte, especially with the increased spending from title rivals Manchester City and Manchester United.
But there are also fears among the Blues’ hierarchy that it will be difficult to deliver the players Conte wants as he head towards August with increased competition in the transfer market at home and abroad.
But Conte has made it clear after watching his side play two exhibition games that this Blues squad is simply not good enough to challenge for the title, and a top four finish is far from guaranteed.
Chelsea have the smallest group of the traditional “big” clubs in England, so Champions League money and Abramovich’s deep pockets were essential parts of allowing Chelsea to compete with their rivals for players. There is no Champions League revenue for Chelsea this season, and they can handle that for one season due to the new TV deal. But to miss out on Champions League football again this season could be financially disastrous for the Blues.
