Antonio Conte says Chelsea need to sign more players to be prepared for the 'most difficult' season of his career

Once again, Conte stressed that Chelsea need to sign more players if their 'small squad' is to defend their title and compete in the Champions League

Conte is preparing for the toughest season of his career (Getty)

Antonio Conte has warned he believes the 2017-18 campaign will be “the most difficult” of his managerial career, as he again conspicuously stressed Chelsea need to sign more players for what is a “small squad”.

Conte also pointedly admitted for the first time that they had got someway lucky with injuries last season. The Italian said there were “many reasons” for that strong admission and, having rejected the idea one was extra pressure because they must now defend the title, appeared to be using it to applying extra pressure on the club board for reinforcements in a campaign when there is also the extra front of the Champions League.

Chelsea have currently made just four new signings in Alvaro Morata, Antonio Rudiger, Tiemoue Bakayoko and back-up goalkeeper Willy Caballero while letting up to eight first-team squad members go to other clubs or on loan, and a frustrated Conte said the hierarchy are well aware of the need to act. He wants to bring in four more players, including two wing-backs, another centre-half and a stand-in striker. The manager's admission certainly seemed connected to that.

“For sure, for me, it will be the most difficult season of my career,” the Italian said ahead of his side’s Community Shield match against Arsenal at Wembley on Sunday. “I’m sure about this. It will be the most difficult of my career as a coach.

“For many reasons. It’s very difficult. I haven't a lot of time to explain a lot of these reasons. But I’m sure about this… that next season will be very tough - the most difficult of my career. I have this perception and I hope I’ve made a mistake.”

Conte had already told broadcast media how he had discussed the need for much more strength in depth with the board, stating “it's important for me that the club knows my opinion about the number we need”. He went into more detail later, as the issue of signings heavily occupied his thoughts with less than four weeks now until the end of the window.

Conte is eager for the club to make more signing (Getty)

“This is the reality, no?” Conte said. “We have a small squad… Everyone can see the situation, not because the coach shouts, ‘I want this’, or, ‘I want this’. The situation is very clear. We are trying to improve the situation but, for me and for my players, the best way now is to be focused on the pitch, to work, to try to improve and don't think of the other situation. But, for sure, we hope, in the future, to improve this situation because you can see.”

Asked why they hadn’t made more signings by now, Conte said: “I don't know. I don't know. I think about this. Everyone is trying to do their job but, for sure, I think this question is good for the club, not for me.”

When it was put to him what answers he was given when Conte himself discussed this with the board, he merely stated: “We have to wait. We have to wait for the best moment, the best solution. We have to wait.”

“For the rest, and I can tell my opinion, but then there is a club to make the final decision and every decision is of the club. The final decision is always of the club. My task is to put in my work all myself and to try to bring my staff, my players to put in our job everyday all ourselves, to improve.”

The situation raises questions over why Chelsea have let so many players go before actually bringing in the signings they actually want, and brought noteworthy responses from the manager. When asked why Nemanja Matic had been sold to Manchester United, Conte stonily said “you have to ask the club about this” but his face arguably said even more given he followed it with a striking glare.

He was much more explicit when it came to Diego Costa, who is almost certain to go to Atletico Madrid. Responding to comments from the player’s legal representative Ricardo Cardoso that the Italian had made it “impossible” for Costa to play for Chelsea again due to how he had “dismissed” him with a text message, Conte re-iterated that the player's camp “knew very well” what the stance was since January.

A Chelsea statement added that Cardoso’s comments were “nonsense”.

Costa is on the verge of leaving the club (COLORSPORT) (COLORSPORT/DANIEL BEARHAM)

The situation nevertheless leaves the defending champions currently depending on a core squad staying fit in order to retain the title, perhaps explaining why Conte elaborated on how fortunate they’d been last season with injuries more than ever before.

“I think we were lucky and, also, very good. There are two different injuries. There are traumatic injuries, for example, [Eden] Hazard. His injury with the national team was traumatic and when there is a traumatic injury, you can do nothing. And the other injuries are muscular problems and in this way, you must be very good with your work to avoid them.

“In this case, my staff was very good to avoid this type of injuries. At the end of the season, I think we were very lucky and very good to have not a lot of injuries.”

Hazard and new signing Bakayoko are injured for Sunday and, given the defence is expected to stay as last season, it means Morata is likely to be the only new signing starting. It wasn’t all pressure over purchases, however, as the Italian re-emphasised the mental strength of his squad.

"If you want to make an excuse for this or something else, I think this is not the right way… I think this group of players, Im very pleased to have them. Because their commitment, work rate they show me every day is great, fantastic.

“I must be pleased, it is a pleasure for me to work with this group. I’m sure for their commitment, I’m sure they want to improve, I’m sure they want to work harder than last season. I’m confident about this.”