Reports: Antonio Conte unhappy with Chelsea board after failing to sign Top 3 targets

What’s the story?

Chelsea have had an average transfer window. They have managed to replace all the top players who left the club this summer but the squad strength has reduced drastically.

Dominic Fifield, the Guardian journalist also believes that is the case. He also reports that Antonio Conte is unhappy with the way the club handled the transfer activities, especially by not signing his top 3 targets.

Fifield claims that Conte wanted Romelu Lukaku, Virgil van Dijk and Alex Sandro in the squad - none of them were signed by the club this summer. Speaking on Sky Sports' Sunday Supplement show, he said:

"I think the hierarchy will look back and think: 'We've not had a bad window'. They've spent £180m and recouped a fair chunk, and their squad is perhaps marginally stronger than in May. But I think Conte wanted it to be a lot stronger and he is disappointed that they haven't got a Virgil Van Dijk or a [Romelu] Lukaku in. Alex Sandro as well. He wanted all these players, and that level of tension that's been there all summer will continue to simmer."

In case you didn’t know...

Chelsea have had a mass exodus during the summer. 28 players have been loaned out while academy products like Chalobah and Nathan Ake have been sold.

This has left Antonio Conte with a paper thin squad but it's filled with a group of players who are determined to succeed.

The heart of the matter

Dominic Fifield believes that rift between Chelsea's board and Antonio Conte has widened following the transfer window. He claims that Conte wanted to sign Van Dijk, Lukaku, and Alex Sandro at any cost but the board let him down by signing none of them.

What’s next?

Chelsea take on Leicester City when the Premier League kicks off again. The Blues have takes all six points from the last two games following their shock defeat on opening day to Burnley.

Author’s Take

While it's true that Antonio Conte wanted Van Dijk and Alex Sandro, it was the Chelsea board, especially Michael Emenalo, who wanted Romelu Lukaku back at the club.

Alvaro Morata was always the #1 choice for Conte and he's got his man! Why will he be complaining? As for Van Dijk and Sandro goes, he would only be bothered about the Juventus defender.

Chelsea already have David Luiz, Gary Cahill, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Cesar Azpilicueta to play in the position on Van Dijk while only Marcos Alonso is available as an out-and-out left-back.