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Antonio Conte takes a dig at Ross Barkley

The Everton midfielder was very close to a deadline day switch to Stamford Bridge but performed a stunning U-turn to end what had been a frustrating transfer window for the Blues.

File Photo: Everton's Ross Barkley (left) battles for the ball with West Ham's Mark Noble

Bengaluru, September 10: Chelsea manager Antonio Conte hit back at Everton midfielder Ross Barkley’s decision to turn down a move to Chelsea after reports suggested the England international had pulled out of the deal due to being unable to speak to the Italian.

The Everton midfielder was very close to a deadline day switch to Stamford Bridge but performed a stunning U-turn to end what had been a frustrating transfer window for the Blues.

His last-gasp decision to reject a move saw rumours spread that Barkley couldn’t get hold of Conte because the former Juventus coach had his phone switched off or was under instructions to not speak to the 23-year-old.

Conte denied such claims and stated that the attraction of playing for a big club like Chelsea should have been enough to make the player’s mind.

“If a player has great desire to play for a great club, he signs,’ he said ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Leicester.

“Sometimes it’s ­important for the ­manager to speak to a player before he signs. Other times it’s not. Yes [I have signed players without speaking to them].

“I don’t want to speak about my English experience. But when I was at Juventus, players signed for Juventus. Not for the manager.”

It was a difficult summer for the Italian, he missed out on a host of top targets including Romelu Lukaku, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fernando Llorente, with the trio all joining Premier League rivals.

Conte also praised his new signing Danny Drinkwater before the game against Leicester City on Saturday, a game which Chelsea won the hard way and proved why they could be the champions of England yet again.

Conte said, “Two years ago, together with N’Golo Kante, they won the league. They played every game and were strong. He’s a ­really good player.

“The midfielders are very ­important because I need specific characteristics. Danny has those.”

Story first published: Sunday, September 10, 2017, 12:36 [IST]
Other articles published on Sep 10, 2017