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Lucas Piazon, who is currently on loan at Fulham from his parent club Chelsea, has admitted that he’s growing increasingly frustrated with being loan at by the West London side and that he is desperate to find a club that he can call his permanent home.

The Brazilian forward was considered to be one of the world’s hottest properties when Chelsea beat off competition from the likes of Juventus to secure his pre-contract signature back in 2011. He was only eligible to play for the senior team at Chelsea after he could gain a work visa in 2012, but he started playing for the reserves straight away after joining up with the club in the summer transfer window of 2011.

Despite appearing on the bench on a number of occasions and starting several League Cup matches, Piazon has only made one Premier League appearance for the Blues, which came back in 2012. Since then he has spent his Chelsea career on loan at Malaga, Vitesse Arnhem, Eintracht Frankfurt and Reading. In moving to Fulham on a loan until January he has joined an incredible 37 other players that Chelsea have sent out on loan.

The 22-year-old is not impressed by the way his parent club have been using him, however, believing that Chelsea need to re-assess their loan system. He said, “I’m tired of moving abroad. One, two, three loans, maybe that’s enough. It’s time for me to stay somewhere for more than one year. It makes no sense to go on loan all the time. It is not good for any player in my experience – or the experience of the other boys. I don’t see it as a positive thing any more. To be in a different place every year is not good for me at 22”.

The Brazilian revealed how life is hard for a loanee because it’s difficult to force your way into a squad that already knows each other. He said, “It’s difficult to get a place in the team. They have their own players. You do your best, try to get a place in the squad, minutes on the pitch, score and create goals. That’s all you can do”.

Perhaps most revealing of all was Piazon’s admission that he barely spoke to Antonio Conte before sent out on loan. The new Chelsea head coach arrived earlier in the summer having led the Italy national side to the European Championships in France, but Piazon felt he wasn’t given a fair chance to prove himself to the manager who seemed to be all about making the squad train harder.

The Brazilian youngster said, “We haven’t spoken much and we’ve said nothing about football. It’s difficult when there’s a big change. The Italian mentality is to train hard. They arrived and then went to Austria and then to the USA. The players have found the training tough but they’re enjoying it”.

Chelsea’s new signing David Luiz, who is returning to Stamford Bridge for a second spell, has told the club’s official website that he’s happy to play wherever he’s needed in Antonio Conte’s new look side.

The 29-year-old was signed by the Blues in January of 2011 for a fee believed to be in the region of €25 million. In June of 2014 he left the club to join the French side Paris Saint-Germain in a £50 million move, singing a five year contract with the Ligue 1 team. Then, on transfer deadline day last month he returned to West London for a deal believed to be worth £34 million.

Chelsea’s new head coach Antonio Conte had been chasing a new defender all summer, missing out on several top targets. He was hoping to add some youth and versatility to an ageing backline and Luiz will be able to provide that. Although he is usually used as a centre-half he can play in any number of positions around the backline and even as a defensive midfielder.

He told the Chelsea website, “I started playing three at the back with Vitoria in Brazil, but it doesn’t matter where, I want to help and when I am in the team I am there to try to help”. The reference to three at the back was made because that is a formation that Conte has employed in the past, including when he was the manager of his former club Juventus and when he was in charge of the Italy national side. His regular use of it has led some to believe that he’s hoping to make use of it with his Chelsea team, too.

The Brazilian is confident that Conte will get his tactics right, whatever he chooses to do. He said, “The coach is an amazing coach, he understands a lot of tactical things and I know he chooses every match the best line up, so if he needs to play three, four or two, it doesn’t matter, I am there if he wants me to play. In different positions I am available”.

Conte’s desire for fresh blood in the Chelsea defence was also boosted by the arrival of Marcus Alonso from Fiorentina. Cesar Azpilicueta has been filling in on the left side of defence but prefers to play at right-back; something that should now be possible for Conte to accommodate given that Alonso is a specialist left-back.

In an interview with Chelsea TV, the club’s official television channel, the Italian manager declared his confidence that the new signings will make a difference for the West London club in the rest of campaign. He said, “They can improve our squad and now it is right to work with David Luiz and Marcus Alonso to put them in our idea of football”.

However the former Juventus player believes that hard work lies ahead if Chelsea are to become a force in the Premier League once more.It is not just defensive work that his players need to be focussed on, but also on their fitness. Having endured a terrible campaign that saw José Mourinho sacked and the club limp to a tenth-place finish as well as fail to win any silverware, Conte is determined to see hard work become the players’ motto.

Speaking to Chelsea TV about the work ahead he said, “Now we have to work on the defensive situation, on the defensive line. We have to work to improve our physical condition, our tactical condition and to try to continue our good season”.

The Blues have won their opening three fixtures of the Premier League campaign and are due to head to Swansea when hostilities renew after the international break. They then have a tricky home tie against top-four rivals Liverpool before travelling to play the team that took the Premier League crown off them last season, Leicester City. Conte will be hopeful that his new signings can keep the good mood going at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea’s new midfield dynamo, who was signed from defending Premier League champions Leicester City for a fee believed to be in the region of £30 million in July, has revealed that former Chelsea manager José Mourinho tried to lure him to his new club Manchester United this summer.

Kante, who is currently on international duty with France, was one of the star performers of the Leicester team last season and received interest from a number of different clubs for his signature after the Foxes won the Premier League title. He has revealed how he spoke to Mourinho after the season ended and discovered that the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ was keen to take him to Old Trafford.

Kante was delighted to be called by the former Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Chelsea manager but was already talking to Chelsea and weighing up whether to move to Stamford Bridge or to remain at the King Power Stadium. He said, “It was amazing to have Mourinho call me, even though I’d been warned before how he would appeal to me. I listened to his arguments about why I should move to United. But at that time I was hesitant between staying at Leicester or leaving for Chelsea”.

The French midfielder said that a conversation with Chelsea’s new head coach Antonio Conte was enough to persuade him that a move to West London would be best for his career. He said, “
My discussions with them were already well underway. But when I spoke, I had a good feeling with Conte”.

So far it appears as though his decision has been justified. Chelsea have won all three of their opening fixtures and are joint-top of the Premier League alongside fellow cash-rich club Manchester City and Mourinho’s new charges at Manchester United. The Frenchman has played ninety minutes in all three of the Blues’ league games so far.

Chelsea striker Diego Costa, who is currently on international duty with Spain, has claimed that the Spanish press treat him unfairly and that they would be more respectful of him if he were a ‘natural Spaniard’ who played for one of the country’s top teams like Barcelona or Real Madrid.

Costa was born in Brazil but switched his national allegiance to Spain in 2014 just before the World Cup was held in his birth land. He believed he’d have more chance of success with Spain given that they were the World and double European champions heading into the tournament. He played two games for Brazil before declaring that he wished to become a Spanish national, having lived in the country for seven years.

He made his debut for Spain in March of 2014 and has since made eleven appearances, scoring just once. That is in direct contrast to his Chelsea form. Costa joined the West London club from Atlético Madrid in 2014 and has scored 34 goals in the Premier League in 57 appearances, winning the league title with them in his debut season.

Costa came off the bench for Spain in their friendly match against Roberto Martinez’s Belgium last Thursday and almost immediately set-up Manchester City’s David Silva for the opening goal in a 2-0 win. The Spanish press were unimpressed with his performance, however, after he came on to replace Alvaro Morata midway through the first-half.

Speaking after the match with Belgium Costa hit back at the Spanish press saying, “They criticise me a lot and if I played for Real Madrid or Barca and was a natural Spaniard they’d say I had a good game, possibly my best for the team. I didn’t score but I can be useful to the team. I participated a lot in the game and I leave here happy, unlike in other games”.

Costa has been criticised in the UK for his combative style, which he sometimes takes too far. He was suspended last year for stamping on Liverpool’s Emre Can and was also suspended retrospectively for dealings that occurred during Chelsea’s London derby with Arsenal. He was sent off during the quarter-final of the FA Cup against Everton at Goodison Park last season and also appeared to bite Gareth Barry on the neck, though the Football Association decided not to take that matter any further.

The Brazil born Spanish international scored in Chelsea’s opening two games of this campaign but was booked in both matches and could easily have been sent off if the referees of the games had seen certain incidents in a different light. Costa is aware that he has a reputation and feels that maybe he’s suffering from the Spanish press because of that. He said, “I haven’t done great things for Spain, I can’t lie, but when I play well they should say so. They criticise me for my character, but I also have quality”.

Julen Lopetegui replaced Vicente del Bosque in the wake of Spain’s poor performance in this summer’s European Championship in France and the match against Belgium was his first in charge. They welcome Liechtenstein tonight as they get their qualification campaign for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia underway and Costa believes that they are well placed to improve under the former Porto coach. “A new era has started. I have faith in my team mates”, Costa said.

The Chelsea frontman believes that if he keeps producing the performances that he’s been putting in then the goals will start to flow for him when he’s playing for Spain. He also hopes that that will win over the Spanish press. He said, “It’s true that I have unfinished business with scoring but today I felt good and the goals will come. I’d be more concerned if I didn’t have chances, but the team is creating them and that’s good. I will score soon”.

Italian club Juventus have completed the signing of Juan Cuadrado on a incredible three-year loan deal, keeping him at the club until 2019.

The winger spent last season on loan with Juve, making 40 appearances in all competitions and scoring five goals for The Old Lady as they secured their 32nd Serie A title. Now he will return to Turin until the end of his four-and-a-half year contract with the West London club.

José Mourinho brought Cuadrado into Stamford Bridge from Fiorentina for a fee of £23.3 million in 2014, with then Chelsea player Mohamed Salah heading the other way on loan. He was seen as an ideal replacement for Andre Schurrle when the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ sanctioned his move to Wolfsburg in the same summer.

Sadly things didn’t work out for the player at the Premier League side as he only made fifteen appearances for the Blues in all competitions and failed to get on the scoresheet in any of them. Now he heads back to Italy where he enjoyed more success. His contract is heavily incentivised for the player, with Chelsea receiving an annual fee of £4.25 million and Juve having the option to make the deal permanent for around £21.25 million.

The West London club have also inserted clauses into the contract that ensure Juve will have to pay a further £3.3 million should the Serie A side achieve ‘certain sporting results during the player’s contract of employment’. The Colombian did feature in Chelsea’s pre-season campaign but the Blues’ new head coach Antonio Conte has since deemed him surplus to requirements.

Two Chelsea youngsters were sent out on loan by the club on the last day of the transfer window, it has been confirmed.

22-year-old Brazilian Lucas Piazon will join Fulham until January, whilst Christian Atsu will join up with former Chelsea interim manager Rafa Benitez at Newcastle until the end of the season.

Piazon can play in a number of positions across the front line and is seen as a bright spark in the future of Brazilian football. He has gained caps for the national side at under-15, under-17, under-20 and under-23 level. This is not his first loan since signing for Chelsea. He has previously enjoyed stints at Malaga, Vitesse Arnhem and Eintracht Frankfurt. He spent the entirety of last season on loan at Championship side Reading, making 22 appearances and notching up five goals.

Atsu, meanwhile, was signed by José Mourinho from his former club Porto for £3.5 million in 2013. He has so far failed to make a single appearance for the Blues, however, and his loan move includes an option for the St. James’ Park club to buy him permanently when his loan spell comes to an end next summer.

The Ghanian international signed a five-year contract when he joined Chelsea in 2013, but he has spent every season on loan since then. He spent 2013-2014 at Vitesse Arnhem, making 28 appearances and scoring five goals. In 2014-2015 he moved to Goodison Park and made five appearances for Everton, before spending last season at Malaga where he made twelve appearances and scored twice.

The youngster was named Player of the Tournament at the African Cup of Nations in 2015 and expressed his delight at heading to St. James’ Park to play in the Championship under Benitez. He told the club’s official website, “I’m very happy to be at Newcastle. It’s a very big club. They have good facilities and I think Newcastle have one of the best coaches in the world. St. James’ Park is a fantastic stadium with 50,000 fans; the fans here really love football so much and I can’t wait to play at this stadium in front of the fans”.

Benitez himself added, “I agreed with our fans that we needed to bring in another winger, so I am very happy to welcome Christian to the club. He has good ability and pace in the wide areas and also has good experience of English football. He has a different style of play to the other players we have at the moment and that will be important for the squad”.

Atsu has become Rafa Benitez’s fifteenth signing since June as he aims to return the Magpies to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

Chelsea Football Club enjoyed a flurry of activity in the transfer market as the window came to its conclusion last night, including the signing of left-back Marcos Alonso from Fiorentina in a move believed to be in the region of £24 million.

The 25-year-old has previously played in the Premier League after stints with Bolton Wanderers from 2010 until 2013 and a loan spell at Sunderland under former Chelsea midfielder Gus Poyet in 2014. Now he’s signed a five-year contract to move to Stamford Bridge and play under the Blues’ new head coach Antonio Conte.

Speaking to the club’s official website the Spaniard confirmed his delight at taking his career to the next level by joining Chelsea at a time when the West London club are hoping to return themselves to the top end of the Premier League table. They finished a disappointing tenth last season in a campaign that saw the sacking of José Mourinho and the arrival of Dutchman Guus Hiddink in his second spell as interim manager of the Stamford Bridge side.

Alonso said, “I’m very happy. It’s a step up in my career and I think this is the perfect place for me to continue developing. It’s time for me to win some titles. It was an easy decision for me to make when I heard the club were interested in signing me. My family and close friends know Chelsea is the club I have dreamed about playing for so I’m really excited about the challenge and I’m looking forward to working with my new team-mates”.

Alonso is a former Real Madrid academy graduate who has previously represented his home country in their under-19 side. During his two seasons at Fiorentina he notched up 75 appearances for the Serie A side, including take them to a fifth-place finish in Italy’s top-flight last time out.

Chelsea have confirmed that their former defender David Luiz has re-joined the club on a three year contract, moving from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal believed to be worth around £34 million.

The Brazilian first moved to Stamford Bridge in January of 2011 from Benfica for £21 million. He made 143 appearances for the Blues during his first spell, netting twelve goals. He won the FA Cup with the West London club in his first season, the UEFA Champions League in his second year and the UEFA Europa League in his third.

In June of 2014 José Mourinho decided that Luiz was surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge and he was sold to the French side PSG for a world-record fee for a defender of £50 million. He signed a five-year contract with the Ligue 1 side that would have seen him remain in Paris until 2019 had Chelsea not returned for his signature on deadline day.

Luiz has picked up 56 caps for Brazil so far in his career, including the semi-final of the FIFA World Cup in 2014 which the home nation lost 7-1 to Germany. Chelsea had been trying to re-sign him for some time but PSG had been rejecting their approaches before the player himself discovered that is former club were in for him. He then spoke to the French club’s President, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, as well as their sporting director and fellow Brazilian Leonardo in order to inform them that he wanted to return to West London.

The 29-year-old’s move was completed with just five minutes left before the window shut last night. Speaking to the official Chelsea television channel he said, I’m very happy to be here again. It’s fantastic to have this second opportunity to play for this club. I love this club so that’s why I am here. Let’s try to continue the nice history with a lot of joy and try to get success”.

The defender also spoke about his desire to prove himself to the Chelsea fans who were disappointed to see him leave back in 2014. He said, “It will be an amazing opportunity to show to the fans again how I love this club and how I love to play for this club. I cannot wait to wear the shirt and play at Stamford Bridge again”.

The only major trophy that Luiz did not pick up during his initial spell at Chelsea was a Premier League title, but he is determined to forget what’s gone before and look to win more silverware under the club’s new boss Antonio Conte. He said, “This is the past. We need to win again. I have the hunger to win. Of course I want to win the Premier League and of course I want to win all the titles again. I am here because I have ambition to play for a big club, and when you play for a big club you need to think about winning every single match”.

The Brazilian confirmed that he couldn’t be happier to be playing for the West London club again. He said, “I’m delighted to return to Chelsea. We had a fantastic story during my first time at the club and I want to help the team and Antonio Conte achieve a lot of success”. He finished his interview with a message to the club’s supporters that it’s time for them to enjoy their football again. Luiz: “I’m back, I cannot wait to see you guys and to give back what you guys gave to me in the first period I was here. Let’s enjoy!”

Eden Hazard has praised his new team-mate N’Golo Kante by declaring that ‘he’s like a rat, he goes everywhere!’.

Kante, who is one of only three signings brought in by the club’s new head coach Antonio Conte so far this summer, was bought from defending Premier League champions Leicester City for a fee believed to be worth around £30 million. He has started all three of Chelsea’s games of the new campaign, helping them to win nine points from nine.

The Blues opened the new season against their London rivals West Ham and have since gone on to play Watford and Burnley. During those games Kante has made eight successful tackles, five interceptions and has notched up a 95% pass completion rate, showing that he has not had a problem adapting to his new club.

Conte is hoping that Kante and fellow new boy Michy Batshuayi can help Chelsea get back to the right end of the table, having finished in a disappointing tenth position last time out. They got off to their worst start to a top-flight campaign since the 1960s and manager José Mourinho paid the price. The self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ was sacked in December, with Dutchman Guus Hiddink coming in to replace him. Chelsea finished the campaign with no trophies, something that is a rare occurrence under the ownership of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.

Hazard, who is away on international duty with his home nation of Belgium at the moment, believes that Kante is the sort of player that gives attackers the confidence to try things they may otherwise be too scored to try. Speaking ahead of Belgium’s friendly game against Spain at the weekend the Belgian forward said, “He gives us confidence. We want to try to dribble and to pass the opponent because we know, even if we try but don’t pass the opponent, and if we lose the ball, then he is there behind us and he can take the ball”.

Hazard, who struggled along with the rest of the Chelsea squad during the last Premier League season, is getting back to his best form this time around. He has already scored two goals in three games for the Blues, demonstrating that Kante’s support in games is helping him to forget about his defensive duties and concentrate solely on his attacking duties.

Chelsea’s Brazilian forward Kennedy has joined the London club’s Southern rivals Watford on loan until the end of the season, the club has confirmed.

The youngster came through the youth ranks at Fluminense and is viewed as one Brazil’s hottest properties for the future. He was signed by José Mourinho for £6.7 million last August but struggled to nail down a starting place as the Portuguese manager cam under pressure. The Blues got off to their worst start to a top-flight campaign since the 1960s, eventually leading to the sacking of the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ in December of last year.

Mourinho was replaced by Guus Hiddink on an interim basis and the Dutchman placed a little more faith in the Brazilian. Between the two managers he notched up twenty appearances for Chelsea last term in all competitions, scoring his first goal for the club in a League Cup win over Walsall. He also got his name on the scoresheet against Norwich City in March. His goal against the Canaries came after a mere 39 seconds of play and was the fasted goal scored in the top-flight last season.

The Blues’ new head coach Antonio Conte has deemed the Brazil under-20 international to be surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge, however, and has sanctioned his loan move to Watford to give him the chance to gain some more experience of life in the Premier League. Kennedy, who can play in the forward line or as a left-back, will be hoping to get his debut for the Hornets when top-flight football resumes on September the tenth. Watford go up against West Ham United, with the Hammers have suffered a stuttering start to the new campaign.

A statement on Watford’s official website said, “Watford FC is delighted to announce the signing of Chelsea’s Kenedy on a season-long loan. A versatile addition to Walter Mazzarri’s Premier League squad, the left-sided operator can play at full-back or in a more advanced midfield role”.