Antonio Conte says he is involved in daily discussions with Chelsea’s board over how to strengthen his squad ahead of the new season.
Nathan Ake, Nathaniel Chalobah and Bertrand Traore have all left Chelsea during this transfer window, while the futures of Diego Costa and Nemanja Matic remain unclear.
Conte has spent more than £100m to sign Alvaro Morata from Real Madrid, Antonio Rudiger from Roma and Tiemoué Bakayoko from Monaco, but the Chelsea head coach is keen to make further additions this summer.
“With the club we speak every day about the way to strengthen this team and the squad,” Conte said during Chelsea’s visit to Singapore.
“The club knows very well which is my idea and where are the positions to strengthen, and if this is possible, it is okay. If not, we continue this way.
“It’s normal for every big team to try and reinforce its squad, to improve in the numerical aspect and to improve the quality. I think this is normal. For sure, in England next season, it will be a great challenge for all the teams.”
Conte is set to hand Morata his first start in Sunday’s pre-season friendly against Inter Milan, after Chelsea’s record-signing came off the bench to provide an assist for Michy Batshuayi in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to Bayern Munich.
Conte also indicated Germany international Rudiger is likely to see his first taste of action as part of a strong Chelsea side for Sunday’s match, which concludes the club’s pre-season tour to Asia.
He said. “Rudiger can play one part of the match. He has only trained with us for two days.
“It is very important to bring my players in a good fitness as soon as possible. For this reason, we play with the best starting 11 [against Inter].”
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