helsea Transfer News LIVE updates: Conte quit warning, £27m Aurier deal, Van Dijk m

Chelsea to continue £135m spree - Begovic
19:56: Asmir Begovic is expecting Chelsea to continue
their summer spending spree after losing to Arsenal in
the Community Shield.
"Chelsea would have been disappointed to lose that
game [against Arsenal]," Begovic told talkSPORT.
"Obviously they have let a lot of players go, a lot of
players have left for many different reasons, but
there's still just under a month left of the transfer
window.
"A lot of things can happen. I don't think you're going
to see the true Chelsea until the end of August, but
they can't afford a slow start."
Conte exit warning
19:17: Antonio Conte could quit Chelsea if he doesn’t
get more players in this summer, says Chris Sutton.
Conte is frustrated with the lack of progress Chelsea
have made on certain deals.
The Blues have nevertheless still spent £130m on
three players, with Willy Caballero a fourth on a free
deal.
And Sutton says Conte is not used to this restriction.
“They’ve got no strength in depth. And when you see
the players which they have got, well they’re been
like-for-like replacements,” Sutton said on 5 Live.
“Costa is not going to play, there’s been a
disagreement. Morata has come in for him. Terry, it’s
Rudiger. Matic, Bakayoko. And Begovic, Caballero.
Those are the changes.
“Then lots of the young players have gone out on loan.
How are they going to fight on all these fronts?
“And then you have the manager seemingly suggesting
that he didn’t want Matic to go, which means does he
have the power?
“Didn’t he walk away from Juventus for something
similar? It wouldn’t be a total shock for me. He is
extremely agitated.”
Chelsea "will bid" for Van Dijk
17.10: Chelsea is the obvious destination for Virgil van
Dijk and they will make a bid for the Southampton
man, according to pundit Steve Nicol.
Liverpool legend Nicol believes Southampton will not
sell another one of their players to the Anfield side ,
which gives Chelsea a chance to sign him.
"There's two reasons for that (Chelsea as possible
destination)," Nicol said on ESPN FC.
"One is that they obviously want him and they'll put a
bid in I'm sure.
"The other one is, from what I believe, the people at
Southampton are saying 'you know what, we've had
enough of Van Dijk' and I think they will let him go.
But it will not be to Liverpool."
Lewis Baker set for loan
14:10: Academy graduate and England Under-23s star
Lewis Baker is set to be sent out on loan by Chelsea.
Despite the Blues being short on midfield options, the
London Evening Standard claim Baker will leave soon.
Tiemoue Bakayoko is still working his way back to
fitness, leaving Cesc Fabregas and N'Golo Kante as
Antonio Conte's only options in the middle.
But reinforcements are being pursued prior to the
window closing.
Drinkwater top target
12:38: Leicester midfielder Danny Drinkwater has
emerged as a top target for Chelsea.
Antonio Conte wants up to four new signings before
the transfer window slams shut at 11pm on August 31.
The London Evening Standard say Chelsea director
Marina Granovskaia has been away from her base at
Stamford Bridge for the past few days working on
deals.
Drinkwater, 27, is believed to be high up on Conte's
wish list as he looks to strengthen his midfield options.
Chelsea hope for Van Dijk
10:33: Virgil van Dijk is understood to prefer a move to
Liverpool, where he would play under Jurgen Klopp.
But The Times say Chelsea and Arsenal hope that
Southampton could still refuse to sell their captain to
Liverpool because of the whole tapping up situation.
Antonio Conte and Arsene Wenger are both set to play
three centre-backs this season and are interested in
Premier League-proven Van Dijk.
Conte wants Sidibe
09.00: Chelsea have identified Monaco defender Djibril
Sidibe as their latest target, according to Italian outlet
TransferMarketWeb.
Having seemingly missed on Juventus' Alex Sandro,
the Blues have switched their attention to the highly-
rated France international.
The report says Monaco could allow Sidibe to follow
Bakayoko to Chelsea, providing they find cover for the
Frenchman.
The Ligue 1 champions are keen to sign Aston Villa
left-back Jordan Amavi and his arrival could set the
wheels in motion for a deal.
Chelsea are expected to compete with Manchester
United for Gareth Bale
Mourinho can win Bale - Henry
08:15: Manchester United can blow other clubs out of
the water in the race for Gareth Bale, Thierry Henry
believes.
Express Sport understands Chelsea are also serious
contenders to land the Real Madrid star.
However, Thierry Henry questions whether any other
club can rival United for Bale, as Mourinho has already
admitted he is ready to "fight".
"[Bale] is made for every league," Henry said on Sky
Sports' The Debate show.
"If he becomes available I don't think it will only be
Man Utd going in for him.
"But on the other side how many teams could
compete with what Manchester United could offer?
"When you have a guy like Gareth Bale he gives you
another dimension. If he leaves I'm sure [Mourinho]
will try and buy him - and if he comes then watch out
everybody."
Serge Aurier talks
05:00: Chelsea are locked in talks with Paris Saint-
Germain over a £27million move for full-back Serge
Aurier.
The champions have been galvanised into trying to
push several big-money deals over the line before the
transfer deadline, with unhappy manager Antonio
Conte increasing his demands for more new faces.
The controversial Aurier, who is also the subject of a
bid by Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho, has
now become the player Conte is pushing hardest for.
Express Sport understands talks have been held.
The one major complication to the deal is that the 24-
year-old Ivory Coast international is currently banned
from entering the UK.
How Chelsea could look with Virgil van
Dijk
Fri, August 4, 2017
How could Chelsea look if they sign Virgil van Dijk
from Southampton?
PLAY
How Chelsea could look with Virgil van Dijk [Getty
Images]

Chelsea Transfer News: Gary Cahill is concerned by
the size of the squad
Ian Wright on Diego Costa
03:15: Chelsea will be losing at least 20 goals a
season should Diego Costa leave this summer,
according to Ian Wright.
Diego Costa was told by Antonio Conte in June via a
text message that he was free to leave as he isn’t a
part of his long-term plans.
Chelsea have strengthened up front with the club-
record capture of Alvaro Morata for £60million.
But Wright thinks that besides struggling to replace
Costa’s goals, the current Blues squad lacks depth.
“With Costa not involved you have taken away 20 goals
and someone has to replicate that," Wright told BBC
Radio 5 Live.
"I'm not saying Morata won't do that, but when you
look at Chelsea as a whole, they have a good team but
are lacking depth."
Jamie Carragher on Nemanja Matic's move to
Manchester United
01:30: Nemanja Matic's move to Manchester United
sums up Chelsea’s business model.
Those are the thoughts of Jamie Carragher.
Carragher admits he is surprised by the nature of the
deal, insisting it typifies the west London outfit’s
business model.
“Matic’s move to Manchester United was the perfect
example of that,” Carragher said on Sky Sports.
“His replacement is a 23-year-old but you don’t know
how good he’ll be.
“That has been their business model going forward.”
Jamie Carragher on Antonio Conte
00:00 In other news, Jamie Carragher has explained he
would be very surprised if Antonio Conte is still in
charge of Chelsea in 12 months’ time.
Conte steered Chelsea to the Premier League title last
term - his debut campaign with the Blues.
However, after missing out on several key summer
transfer targets, the Italian tactician has voiced his
concerns.
And Carragher has compared Chelsea to Real Madrid,
highlighting how the duo’s ‘ruthless business models’
means firing bosses is a tradition that is likely to
continue.
“I’ll be very surprised if he’s Chelsea manager when
I’m sitting here in 12 months’ time,” Carragher said on
Sky Sports.
"I think he’s the type of manager that won’t accept
involvement from people above especially on the back
of winning the title.”
How Chelsea could look with Gareth Bale
Sat, August 5, 2017
How could Chelsea line up if they sign Gareth Bale?
PLAY
How could Chelsea line up if they sign Gareth Bale?
[Getty Images]
GETTY IMAGES 1 of 12
Monday August 7
Drinkwater to snub Chelsea?
21:30: Chelsea target Danny Drinkwater looks set to
stay at Leicester this summer, according to the
bookies.
The Premier League champions have been heavily
linked with a £30m move for the Leicester midfielder
in recent weeks.
But bookmakers Betfair reckon Drinkwater is expected
to remain at the King Power Stadium, pricing the 27-
year-old at 1/7 to stay put.
While the England international is at odds of 7/2 to
switch to Stamford Bridge before the summer transfer
window shuts.
Drinkwater has the quality - Schwarzer
18:32: Mark Schwarzer has backed Leicester
midfielder Danny Drinkwater to move to Premier
League champions this summer.
“He’s not a Matic, he’s more of a creative player," said
Schwarzer, who worked with Drinkwater at Leicester
from 2015 to 2016.
“At Leicester last season we saw that he struggled
without having N'Golo Kante next to him, but Danny
Drinkwater is a very talented young man and has done
incredibly well at Leicester.
“I think he’s capable of making that step up."
Van Dijk transfer request
17:30: Virgil van Dijk has handed in a transfer request
at Southampton.
In a lengthy statement, the Liverpool and Chelsea
target said: “Over the past six months I have held
numerous discussions with representatives of the
board, the former manager Claude Puel as well as the
new manager Mauricio Pellegrino to inform them all of
my desire to leave the club in search of a new
challenge.
“I am incredibly ambitious and want to achieve as
much as I possible can to fulfil my potential in what is
a very short career as a professional footballer. I want
to play European football again and challenge for
major honours and as such I would like Southampton
to condor the interest in me from top clubs should it
still exist.”
“The period of time that I have just spent injured and
unable to play has put a number of things into
perspective and made me realise just how important it
is to take major opportunities should they arise.
“I have consistently relayed my feeling to senior
management at Southampton in what I believed to be
private and personal conversations. Disappointingly,
these conversations have regularly found their way into
the media.
“I would also like to make clear that I have never once
refused to train. I can confirm I was asked about my
frame of mind and for all of the reasons mentioned
above I was open and honest in saying that I did not
feel I was in a settled mindset given the
circumstances.
“Following this conversation the manager explained
that he only wanted players who he felt were 100%
committed to Southampton and told me I would
therefore have to train away from the first team.”
Antonio Conte says he wouldn't be able to prevent
Eden Hazard leaving Chelsea
Savic wants Costa
16:31: Atletico Madrid ace Stefan Savic wants Diego
Costa to leave Chelsea and join him in Spain.
Atletico are linked with Costa, who wants to re-join his
former side.
But the La Liga club are under a transfer embargo
meaning Costa would be banned from playing for them
for six months if he joined.
But Savic still wants him to move back to Madrid.
“If he comes, we know he could improve the quality of
any team,” Savic told reporters after Atletico beat
Brighton 3-2 in a friendly yesterday.
“He is one of the most important players in the world.
“There is not much else to say about him.”
Simeone tight-lipped over Costa return
13:15: Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has refused
to be drawn into discussion over whether Chelsea
striker Diego Costa will return to the club.
And when asked for his thoughts about whether Costa
could be on the move, Simeone said: “Costa? The club
are the ones that are working on these situations.
“I don’t have time to think about anything other than
improving my players.
“There’s nothing else to say about him, he’s not our
player.”
Size DOES matter…
12:45: Gary Cahill thinks Chelsea have added quality to
their ranks, but isn't entirely sure about the quantity.
Asked if he felt the champions' squad was small, Cahill
pointed to the squad lists on the back of the match-
day programme - which had 24 Chelsea players listed
compared to 41 from Arsenal.
"I don't know, the back of the programme was
interesting today," he said.
"But in terms of quality we've certainly got that and
you just have to hope we don't have too many injuries.
"Obviously the new players that have just come,
they're going to be vitally important for us and the
quicker they settle, the better, but there's no doubt
we've added quality to the team.
"They're going to be tested 100 per cent. We'll see
how that plays out, but we just have to keep
everybody fit, keep everybody sharp. Rest is going to
be important because we're going to have a lot of
games."
Diego Costa was told in June he wasn't part of
Antonio Conte's long-term plans
Morata will come good - Pedro
11:45: Pedro is confident summer signing Alvaro
Morata will recover from his lacklustre debut in
yesterday's Community Shield defeat to Arsenal.
The striker, who arrived from Real Madrid last month,
replaced Michy Batshuayi in the 74th minute and
missed his penalty.
But Pedro thinks he'll become a key player in the
future.
He said: "Morata is an important player and will
become a key player for us.
"He is going to bring a lot to this team, especially with
his goals. He needs time to adapt. We will soon benefit
from his goals."
Aurier to snub Chelsea
10:50: Manchester United could still sign Paris St-
Germain full-back Serge Aurier.
The Red Devils, along with Premier League rivals
Chelsea, have both been linked with the 24-year-old,
who's been banned from entering the UK.
French newspaper L'Equipe says Aurier would rather
join Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford.
And a breakthrough could happen in the next 24 hours
with Aurier set to learn if his appeal against the ban
has been successful today.
Courtois to take more penalties? Lawro think
so...
10:10: Errr, here's an interesting line from Match of
the Day pundit Mark Lawrenson.
He thinks more goalkeepers should take penalties,
despite Thibaut Courtois ballooning his spot kick over
the bar yesterday.
I worry why goalkeepers don't take more penalties
because if you really seriously think about it and we
live in a world of stats with football nowadays," he
mused on Match of the Day.
"They strike more dead balls than anybody else on the
football pitch it was just a poor penalty.
"It's down Watford Junction High Road the ball."

Tweet