Antonio Conte says stretched Chelsea are in a rebuilding phase

• Senior Chelsea players reportedly unhappy with training workload
• Conte: ‘The problem is having to play every game with the same players’

Antonio Conte will not drop the intensity of his training sessions at Chelsea despite the club’s draining schedule, and has claimed the champions are embroiled in a process of “rebuilding” even though they enjoyed startling success last season.

Chelsea host fourth-placed Watford on Saturday having lost their past two league games to slip nine points off the top. They have dropped eight points at Stamford Bridge this season, two more than over the entirety of the last campaign. Conte has publicly pointed to a lack of alternative options in his squad and, with injuries taking their toll, has only one senior midfielder, Cesc Fàbregas, fully fit following the midweek draw with Roma in the Champions League.

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