Conte might have given Chelsea fans something to think about. He recently hinted that Chelsea are not going to join the spending spree that other Premier League clubs are going through.
Even though it appears that the Blues have spent more in Conte’s 2nd season there’s no mind-blowing move to debunk the Italian boss’ hint that Stamford Bridge is running on an austerity budget.
Morata cost a lot, that’s true but his arrival fee was covered by selling Diego Costa and Matic. The likes of Vidal or Alexis Sanchez who have been linked to Chelsea could cost double that which is again lessening enthusiasm that they could put on the blue shirt anytime soon.
On the other hand, we could say that this is just a tactic to help the club spend less. Teams willing to sell, regardless of how profitable they are, will always take such statements into consideration. For example, saying that you as a club are willing to pay as much as needed for any player will definitely allow the selling side to slap an over inflated price tag on transfer targets.
Keeping things low-key and showing you are not spending whatever is asked from you might have the opposite reaction which would only be a good thing for Chelsea.
The prospect of an austerity program has already become a trending Twitter subject among Chelsea supporters:
Doesn’t sound good, but as always I’m sure there’s translation confusions. He was talking about Juventus as well as Chelsea, but yes, clearly not happy.
— Simon Phillips (@siphillipssport) January 4, 2018
Left juventus cos they didnt get his transfer targets and if nothing changes i wont be surpirsed if he does the same at chelsea
— Aju (@ajunaik323) January 4, 2018
Blimey ! That's some statement.
— ⭐⭐Mr. Charles Fitzherbert 💙 🇫🇴 (@CharlieFitzh) January 4, 2018
Whatever Conte’s intention was, fans do not seem at peace with the current situation and even went as far as to suggest the Italian boss might be looking to leave because of the money problems just as it happened when managing Juventus.
https://twitter.com/RInglis_47/status/948840910057627648
I dont believe this why would conte say this so publicly ?? If he had a problem then speak to the board or roman
— #MarinaOut (@Alfie30262735) January 4, 2018
Hopefully, as mentioned this is just a tactic and important players will come to Stamford Bridge. The club would need top-level additions to keep up with Liverpool, City and United.
UPDATE
The irony of the timing of this post is not lost on us as within minutes of the publishing of this post the signing of Ross Barkley from Everton was confirmed by Chelsea for what looks like a steal for only £15m as the midfielder has expressed the appetite to add more goals to his game.
Welcome to Chelsea, Ross Barkley!
Full story 👉 https://t.co/yRzCCYobbd #WelcomeBarkley pic.twitter.com/CvIInoMEIL
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 5, 2018