Month: August 2016

Chelsea’s youth goalkeeper Jamal Blackman has joined Wycombe Wanderers on a short loan, the club have confirmed.

The 22-year-old will play for the Chairboys until the 3rd of January 2017. He has previously enjoyed loan spells at both Middlesbrough and Ostersunds in Sweden. It comes on the back of Wycombe failing to agree terms to extend the loan of Cameron Dawson with his parent club Sheffield Wednesday.

Wanderers have struggled to get a permanent ‘keeper between the sticks and Blackman could become the fifth stopper in as many regular matches if he appears against Accrington tomorrow night. Benjamin Siegrist started the club’s last game against Accrington, Ryan Allsop was in goal against Oxford, Scott Brown started versus Crawley and the aforementioned Dawson was between the sticks against Grimsby.

The Chairboys have played play-off games during that time, but as far as regular League Two matches are concerned there have been a number of changes in goal for Wycombe Wanderers. They will be hoping that the six foot six inches frame of Blackman will be able to fill the void until at least the post-Christmas period as they look to get their season back on track.

Antonio Conte has confirmed that Chelsea are setting their sights on the Premier League title this season and that other clubs in the English top-flight should be prepared for a battle for the crown.

Chelsea are the last of the top sides to get their season underway. They host West Ham at Stamford Bridge tonight and the new head coach of the Blues will be hoping to see his team join Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, José Mourinho’s Manchester United and Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool with three points at the end of the London derby.

Conte’s statement came in the wake of former Chelsea manager Mourinho insisting that other managers were afraid to make bold pledges regarding their hopes for the season. Conte refused to be drawn into the mind games, however, suggesting that there are far worse things to be scared of in life. He said, “No. I must be honest I think that other things scare me, not to win or lose in football”.

Mourinho, who was sacked by Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich in December last year after watching his side endure their worst start to a top-flight campaign since the 1960s, made suggestions over the weekend that Manchester United are the only team capable of winning the Premier League this season. Conte, on the other hand, believes that there are a number of teams in with a shout.

Speaking in his press conference before the match against the Hammers the former Italy national manager said, “I think that in this league it’s very tough, and I think that at the moment six, seven, eight teams can fight to win the title. And I’m sure Chelsea is a good team and we must work very hard to be in the six, seven teams that fight for the title”.

One of the players that Conte will be hoping returns to form this season is Diego Costa. The explosive forward was one of a number of players who under-performed last year in a campaign that saw the Blues finish tenth in the league without any silverware. After Mourinho, the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ was sacked Guus Hiddink was brought in on an interim basis to steady the ship. Results improved but the Dutchman couldn’t repeat his trick of winning the FA Cup with the Blues as he did when he took over from Luis Felipe Scolari in 2008-2009. It led to some Chelsea fans questioning the mentality of some players, including Costa.

The Spaniard has been linked with a move back to his former club Atletico Madrid, but Conte believes he’s the perfect forward to fit in with his gameplan. He said, “Diego is a forward, and he knows that in my idea of football, the forward must always be a point of reference for the team. I don’t like the forward to move around the pitch, I like the forward to stay there, because you are a forward, and your commitment is to score the goal, stay in the right position. You’re a forward, not a midfielder, not a defender”.

Conte has a reputation for being a hardline manager who doesn’t stand for any nonsense, causing many commentators to wonder whether he might want to get Costa off the books sooner rather than later. Yet the former Juventus player and manager has liked what he’s seen from the player. Conte said, “I try to improve all my players. I’m seeing a good attitude from Diego, to work, to improve in different situations. I think Diego can give a lot to this team, and I’m sure that he’ll have a good season”.

The new man in the Stamford Bridge dugout feels that Costa will play an important role in the club’s search for the title and feels that he shares his passion and desire to win. He said, “For me he’s an important player, he had a fantastic season two years ago when Chelsea won the title. Last season for a while he didn’t score, then he started to score, but I’m happy that Diego stays here to work with us. I like the spirit of Diego, because he always shows a great passion. Me, I’m the same, I have great passion for football. He doesn’t want to lose and I like this passion”.

Chelsea’s new head coach Antonio Conte is preparing for his first game in English football tonight when Chelsea take on their London rivals West Ham and he told Sky Sports that he’s slowly adjusting to life in the country’s capital.

One of the Italian’s first jobs was to learn English, a language he had previously not got around to mastering. Having moved his entire family outside of Italy for the first time in his career, Conte felt it was important to speak English fluently for everyone’s sake. He said, “It’s a big challenge for me, but not just for me, for my wife, for my daughter – for my whole family. For the first time we arrive in a different country, a fantastic country with different language and different habits. It’s important we respect the story of the country – that we breathe another air”.

It is not just Conte who will be mastering the English language this year, with the former Italy national manager insisting that it is the language of the Chelsea dressing room. The 47-year-old is expecting everyone in his team to be able to communicate in English without the use of a translator – something that is not currently the case.

Conte has been surprised by some of the differences between life in Italy and in England. The players like to listen to music in the dressing room before a match, for example, which the Italian players would never have done. Conte, “Music in the dressing room before the game in strange to me. In Italy there’s a lot of concentration and focus and you want your players focused. But here I look at the situation and say, ‘Why not?’”

Conte is keen to return Chelsea to the upper echelons of the Premier League after they finished tenth last season. Their poor start to the campaign led to the sacking of José Mourinho, with the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ having overseen the worst start to a top-flight campaign at Stamford Bridge since the 1960s. Guus Hiddink came in to replace him on an interim basis, much as he did in the 2008-2009 season when Luis Felipe Scolari was removed from the dugout by Roman Abramovich after a similarly poor start.

Returning a club to their former glory is something Conte has been asked to do in the past. When he took over as manager at Juventus, a club he had previously been on the books of during his playing days, they had suffered successive seventh-placed finishes in Serie A. The Italian led them to three Serie A titles in his three seasons there.

Pressure, then, is not something that bothers Conte. He said, “I feel great pressure but it is important to live with that pressure and focus on my work. I live football with great passion and this passion gives me the will to improve and the ambition to meet every challenge I face”.

Billionaire Roman Abramovich has invested heavily to buy success in West London and Conte is more than aware of the need to ensure he does not disappoint his new paymaster. He told Sky Sports, “The story of this club is that very, very soon, we must return to fighting for the title. This is what the owner wants, what the fans want, what the players want and what I want”.

Chelsea and West Ham are the final game of the first weekend since the return of the Premier League, with some explosive matches having already got people talking. Hull, who are without a permanent manager and have been ravaged by injuries, beat defending champions Leicester City 2-1 on Saturday before Liverpool took all three points in a seven goal thriller against Arsenal at the Emirates yesterday. Conte will be hoping that the Blues join Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City by getting their season off to a winning start.

20-year-old Chelsea forward has signed a new contract with the club before heading off to join Ajax on loan for the season.

The youngster made his Chelsea debut last season after joining the club in 2013. He scored four goals in sixteen games for the West London club and was the first ever Burkina Faso international to to score a Premier League goal.

Traore joined the Blues as an eighteen-year-old having previously been through the youth system at Auxerre. He signed a four year contract that would have seen him stay at Stamford Bridge until next year, but the club were keen to keep him tied down for a longer period of time before he left to go to Holland on loan for the season.

His new deal will keep him at the club until 2019 and the experience he’ll gain in the Netherlands will be vital to his future in West London. He spent last season on loan at fellow Eredivisie side Stichting Betaald Voetbal Vitesse, more commonly known as Vitesse Arnhem.

Despite sanctioning the loan move at a time when he’s complaining about the lack of value in the transfer market, new Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte believes that Traore has a long future at Stamford Bridge. Speaking about the player’s departure in his press conference in advance of the Blues’ first Premier League game at home against West Ham on Monday night, the Italian said, “Traore is a good prospect, he’s a prospect for a Chelsea player. He’s going on loan to Ajax, he’s a good player”.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has moved to dismiss rumours of a rift between him and the club’s defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic by confirming that he’s an important player for the future.

The Italian, who arrived as Chelsea’s first permanent head coach since self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ José Mourinho was sacked by Roman Abramovich last December, has denied that there is any problem with the Serbian. The 28-year-old has been linked with a move to Juventus in the wake of Conte’s former club sanctioning the sale of Paul Pogba back to Manchester United.

However Conte is adamant that the player is going nowhere and that there’s no problem between the pair. Speaking in his press conference ahead of Chelsea’s first Premier League match under his watch the former Italy national manager said, “Nemanja is an important player for me, and he knows this. There isn’t a problem with him – Nemanja was a Chelsea player and is a Chelsea player”.

Conte also made the point that he’s in touch with all of his Chelsea players, not just the Serbian, to ensure that they’re all happy with life in West London. He said, “I speak a lot with my players, all my players. Usually when you arrive at a new club it’s important to get to know the players, all the aspects”.

The Italian wants to pick their brains to see if they can explain why last season went so wrong for the Blues. They finished in tenth position in the league and failed to get to the final of any of the cup competitions, something that hadn’t happened in recent years. He said, “It’s important to speak with all the players, to understand, to listen, why the last season was so bad. Because for the coach, for the first time arriving it’s important to go inside, into the head of the players to understand and solve the situation”.

The Italian’s first taste of league football in England will come on Monday night when West Ham arrive at Stamford Bridge for the London derby. Conte believes that keeping hold of players like Matic is vital at a time when the transfer fees have become so excessive. The Blues have already paid over £60 million on the signings of N’Golo Kante from Chelsea and Michy Batshuayi from Marseille, but it’s not easy to make all of the signings that the former Juventus manager would like to make.

Conte said, “For all the clubs, it’s a crazy transfer market. Not for Chelsea, in general. This market is a bit crazy, because when you try to buy one or another player, the cost is very, very expensive, and not the real valuation of the player. And it’s a very strange situation. But now we are waiting for the right solution for the club”.

Chelsea’s new head coach Antonio Conte has said that he wants the Blues to enter the new Premier League season with ‘high intensity, after his side concluded their pre-season with a 4-2 win over Werder Bremen yesterday.

The former Italy manager saw goals from Eden Hazard, Diego Costa, Pedro and Oscar give his side the win in Germany as they gear up to begin their league campaign with a match against London rivals West Ham. It will be Conte’s first competitive game as Chelsea manager, having taken over has their first permanent boss since José Mourinho was sacked last December and replaced by Guus Hiddink on an interim basis.

Speaking to the club’s official website the former Juventus player and manager said, “I want to play with high intensity, to win the ball back very soon after we lose it, to attack with the right balance. I saw positive things and many situations that we can improve. We are working on this. Now there is one week of work before the season starts”.

Chelsea look like they will be hard to beat under the Italian, having already secured pre-season wins against AC Milan and Liverpool. Conte acknowledged that the positive results are important ahead of the 2016-2017 league season. He said, “It was a good victory. Pre-season was very tough and hard in all aspects and we must be pleased to finish with a win. It’s important to win for confidence ahead of the start of the season”.

The 47-year-old was concerned by seeing his defence concede two goals, but believed that tiredness was a factor in the way they dealt with strong opposition. He said, “The team started the game in the right way and with the right intensity. There were some bad situations to concede two goals which I didn’t like, we must improve a lot, but we were tired after our pre-season.”.

The new Blues boss revealed this week that his first transfer fee was £100 and eight footballs. Signed by his local Lecce as a 13-year-old, Conte and his team-mate Sandro Morello cost the side ‘eight footballs and three of them were flat’, the Italian told the Mail on Sunday. It’s where he got his disciplinary streak from, though, with his own dad being the boss. He said, “My first team was called Juventina. My father was the owner, the coach, the kit man and everything else. He was my first master. In that period, my father was very tough – and especially with me”.

He also told the Mail that former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti is a friend of his and the fellow Italian, who won the league and FA Cup with the Blues in 2010, encouraged him to head to Stamford Bridge. He said, “Carlo told me about the club. We spoke about people who work there”.

Chelsea’s opposition this weekend performed much better than many people thought they would last season, with Dmitri Payet a particularly impressive performer. Conte knows it won’t be an easy game to kick off a campaign in which he hopes to see his side improve on the disappointment of the last time out when they got off the their worst start to a top-flight campaign under the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’.

He’s pleased with the work so far, though, and believes that they are ready to take on the challenge posed by the Hammers when they arrive in West London on Sunday. He said, “We are working very hard to be ready. It will be difficult. We know we have some problems but we are trying to solve them. I am pleased with the attitude and behaviour of my players. It’s been good and now all of the players need a rest”.

Of the players he has got at his disposal perhaps one of the most surprising members of the first-choice XI is John Terry. The former England captain looked destined to be on his way out of the club towards the end of last season before Conte intervened to keep him at Stamford Bridge. Speaking of Terry the Italian said, “In every team there are some players with great experience, and this experience counts, if you play but also if you don’t play. John is a god example during the training sessions. He has the right attitude and the right behaviour”.

Chelsea winger Mohamed Salah has departed Stamford Bridge in order to sign a permanent deal with Roma, the club have confirmed.

The Egyptian born player was on loan at the Serie A side for all of last season and has now swapped his temporary position there for a more long-term one, He had previously been on loan with another Italian club in the form of Fiorentina.

The 24-year-old was signed by the Blues in January of 2014 for £11 million, having previously impressed the club’s hierarchy with his Champions League performances against them for his former club FC Basle. He struggled to win a place in Jose Mourinho’s starting XI, though, so a series of loan moves followed.

He is the sixteenth player to depart Stamford Bridge in some form or another since the arrival of the club’s new head coach Antonio Conte. The former Italy national manager has already sanctioned the departure of Baba Rahman on a season long loan to German side Schalke, as well as loan deals for numerous promising youngsters, such as Nathan Ake and Lewis Baker.

The club’s new head coach is starting to shape his squad, with Salah and Rahman’s departures coupled with the recent arrivals at the club of the Belgian striker Michy Batshuayi in a £33 million deal from Marseille and French defensive midfielder N’Golo Kante’s signing from Leicester City for a fee believed to be in the region of £30 million.

The former Juventus manager and player decided against recalling Salah to West London for a look at him in pre-season, instead opting to allow him to remain in Italy, He’s been there since he was loaned to Fiorentina at the end of the 2014-2015 Premier League season, having made just thirteen appearances for Chelsea during his time at Stamford Bridge. His actual on-pitch time amounted to less than ten games in Blue.

That contrasts widely with his time in the Italian capital. He made thirty-four league appearances for Roma, helping them to reach the last sixteen of both the Coppa Italia and the Champions League. They also finished third in Serie A, just two points behind Napoli and eleven off eventual league winners Juventus.

Salah also re-found his form in Italy. He finished as Roma’s top-scorer for the season, netting fourteen times in the league and fifteen times in all competitions. Some improvement considering he only scored two during his entire time at Chelsea. The goal scoring continued from where it had left off with Fiorentina. He scored six goals in sixteen games for the Viola.

Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois believes that his Belgium team-mate and new Chelsea signing Michy Courtois will need time to adapt his game to the rigours of the Premier League.

The forward was new Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte’s first signing since arriving at the club, with the former Italy national manager sanctioning his £33.2 million signing from Marseille in July. The 22-year-old signed a five year deal with the Blues and cut short his post-Euro 2016 holiday in order to link up with his new team-mates during their pre-season tour of America.

Batshuayi had been out in France with the Belgium team for the 2016 European Championships, though he couldn’t stop the Red Devils from being knocked out of the tournament at the quarter-final stage by Wales. He was in the squad on merit with fellow Premier League strikers Romelu Lukaku, formerly of Chelsea and now at Everton, as well as Christian Benteke and Divock Origi who both play for Liverpool.

The French striker scored 33 goals in 78 appearances for Marseille; a return that caught the attention of Conte who was also out in France this summer with his Italy team. Courtois believes that Batshuayi has shown enough to mean he will definitely be a success in the Premier League – as long as he’s given time to settle.

Speaking to the club’s official website the Chelsea goalkeeper said, “Michy is a very strong striker, fast, good technique, he can hold a ball and score a goal very easily with either foot. He is good in the air as well. I won’t say it is his strongest point but he can handle himself and being strong as well is important for that. I hope he can prove himself here as well.”

The Chelsea number one feels that the most important thing his fellow countryman will need to do at Stamford Bridge is adapt as quickly as possible to the pace of life in English football. He said, “He will need to adapt a bit to the speed of the Premier League because I think it is faster than the French League, but I think he will adapt fast. He is working hard so hopefully he will have a good season together with us”.

It is yet to be revealed whether Batshuayi will be Conte’s first-choice striker for the 2016-2017 Premier League campaign, with the club still being linked with a move for their former striker Lukaku. The Belgian forward has confirmed that he hopes to leave Everton this summer, with a return to West London almost certain to be his destination. Rumours are also persisting that Diego Costa could be ready to move back to his former club Atletico Madrid before the window shuts. Conte is known to demand discipline from his players and Costa’s time at Stamford Bridge has been marred by a number of controversial incidents.