Chelsea managaer and English Premier
Leagued 2017 manager of the season,
Antonio Conte, has told Barcelona to forget
about Eden Hazard as they line up potential
replacements for Neymar.
According to Dailymail Sports, Liverpool’s
Philippe Coutinho is top of Barca’s list if
Neymar leaves for Paris Saint-Germian, and
Hazard, long since linked with a move to
Real Madrid, has emerged as another option,
according to reports in Spain.
Speaking on potential move for the Chelsea
star to Camp Nou, Conte said; “He is very
happy to stay with us and to play for
Chelsea. I don’t know anything about this
situation.
“In the past I read a lot of stories about
Hazard with Real Madrid, and now
Barcelona. This is the transfer market and
we must understand this,” he said.
Hazard, who has three more years on his
current contract at Stamford Bridge, has not
been part of Chelsea’s pre-season tour to
China and Singapore. He has stayed in
London to continue his recovery from a
broken ankle which will rule him out of the
start of the season.
“It is difficult to say when he will be back.
After a bad injury, after ankle surgery, it is
not easy to programme the date to come
back,” said Conte.
Tiemoue Bakayoko is another player not
involved in the tour as the new £40million
signing from Monaco recovers from keyhole
knee surgery at the end of last season.
“We hope for them to recover very well. You
know the importance of these players but
we will not rush them back.
“Every player must be in the best form to
play otherwise they are put in a bad
position which could be damaging for the
team,” added Conte.
Bakayoko will also need time to understand
the specific demands of Conte’s system
before he will be thrust into the team.
