Chelsea will reject ALL offers for Michy Batshuayi in January as they need a back-up to Diego Costa
Antonio Conte determined to keep hold of former Marseille man despite lack of game time
CHELSEA will refuse all loan offers from rivals clubs for striker Michy Batshuayi in next month’s transfer window.
The Belgium is finally set to make his first Premier League start due to Diego Costa’s suspension for the leaders when Bournemouth visit Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day.
And he will have to remain with the Blues until at least the end of the season as he is needed as backup for the Spanish international upon his return.
Antonio Conte forked out £33million to Marseille to bring the striker to west London in the summer.
But due to fine form of Costa, Batshuayi’s opportunities have been restricted to the cup, leading West Ham to start plotting a loan move for the ace.
related articles
The forward has netted once in the top-flight against Watford, but the three starts out of his 13 appearances all came in the EFL Cup.
He did find the net twice against Bristol Rovers in that competition, but those three strikes are his only goals so far for the Blues.
The Hammers are desperate to add some firepower to their squad and Slaven Bilic had identified Batshuayi as the man he wanted.
The Croatian wants to bring him in on a six-month loan deal – but Conte will not entertain the idea of the 23-year-old leaving.
He will be first in line to replace Costa should anything happen to the prolific goal machine.
And while Batshuayi is frustrated at his lack of match action, his attitude on the training ground has impressed his manager.