Antonio Conte says that he does not see the Chinese Super League as a threat to Chelsea, despite falling out with striker Diego Costa over a reported £80 million bid from Tianjin Quanjian for the Spaniard.
Costa was left out of the squad for the 3-0 Premier League victory over champions Leicester City on Saturday evening, and although Conte said afterwards that Costa’s omission was due to a back complaint, the player’s commitment to the club has been thrown into fresh doubt in light of the transfer interest from China.
The mooted deal for Costa is believed to be worth £30 million a year, but Conte said: “Money is not all. When you are playing for a big team like Chelsea, you must be pleased. It’s a great honour to play for Chelsea. For this reason, I don’t see a threat for my players.”
Costa is also believed to have instructed intermediaries to travel to China to assess potential clubs and transfer offers, either this month or in the future. Chelsea have already sold midfielders Oscar and John Obi Mikel to Chinese clubs Shanghai SIPG and Tianjin TEDA this season.
However, asked if he feared an exodus from the Premier League to the Chinese Super League, Conte said: “This league is really competitive. I think this league wants every player to come to play this league.
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“I’m sure this league is the first in the world for a lot of positive things. And for this reason, these offers from China, I don’t think are a threat for our league.”
Pressed on whether he was concerned that agents could destabilise players, he replied: “I am not worried about this.”
Chelsea’s travelling fans sang Conte’s name at the end of Saturday’s victory and the manager said that he was delighted to have received such a public display of support following the dispute with Costa.
“The fans with me are always special, from the first day,” he said. “This relationship is growing a lot. I am pleased because it’s fantastic to have this type of relationship, with great passion, and I think that I show this in every game and they are appreciating this.
“I hope to continue this way, because it’s important to stay always together with the team, the players, the fans, the club, me, the staff.
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“It’s important to continue to work together.”