5 midfielders Antonio Conte should target in January for Chelsea

3) Marco Verratti

Antonio Conte could have been a Euro 2016 champion had Marco Verratti been fit

An Italian powerhouse at the heart of Conte’s Chelsea seems almost inevitable, but prying Marco Verratti away from Paris St-Germain’s moneyed clutches seems an almost impossible task. However, the lure of linking up with his former national team manager in addition to playing in a competitive environment like the Premier League should be enough to sway Verratti to join Chelsea.

If he does arrive at Chelsea, Stamford Bridge will be witness to one of the finest midfielders in the world. Verratti was already playing the deep-lying playmaker role at PSG alongside similarly physical midfielders during Laurent Blanc’s reign – so he should not miss a beat in playing a similar system for Chelsea.

The Italian has made 227 passes in 4 games for the Ligue 1 champions this season, successfully completing 207 of those. Defensively, Verratti is the perhaps the best of the midfielders on this list, as the 23 year old has won 63% of his duels in midfield, a statistic that is sure to please Conte.