Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is reportedly ready to make big changes to his side after defeat to Arsenal at the weekend, with his defence set for a reshuffle.
The Premier League giants have kept just one clean sheet in all competitions so far this season, and have conceded nine goals in their last four games.
In turn, according to The Daily Mail, both Branislav Ivanovic and Gary Cahill are expected to be ‘phased out’ in the coming weeks, with Conte waiting for both John Terry and Kurt Zouma to return from injury.
Nevertheless, it’s added that the Italian tactician isn’t satisfied with those options long-term, and so despite signing David Luiz and Marcos Alonso before the transfer deadline last month, Conte will be active again in the upcoming windows.
Various names have been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge in recent months, but Conte undoubtedly found it difficult to land his top targets over the summer with rival clubs uninterested in parting company with their top players.
However, what the season has proven so far is that the former Juventus and Italy boss needs more quality in his defensive line, and so it could lead to Chelsea splashing out in order to land their preferred targets to add some solidity to the defence.
Given his reputation for building a strong defensive base on which his previous sides have built their success on, Conte will not be happy with what he has seen in recent weeks.
Both Cahill and Ivanovic in particular have looked shaky, and so it comes as no surprise that they’ll be the first at risk if the Chelsea boss decides that changes are now needed.