Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi is adamant that Antonio Conte has faith in him to deliver as he tried to explain why he hasn’t played much since arriving at the club.
The 24-year-old joined Chelsea for £33m from Marseille in 2016, as reported by The Sun, but he’s made just two Premier League starts and just 35 appearances in total in all competitions.
While Alvaro Morata sustained a hamstring injury last time out against Manchester City, Batshuayi will be in contention to stake a claim in the starting line-up in the coming weeks, and he is adamant that his lack of playing time to this point isn’t to do with any issue with Conte’s belief in him.
“I really think Conte believes in me otherwise he would have said I could leave in the transfer window – and he didn’t say that,” he is quoted as saying by The Sun. “His decisions often depend on the opponent and the tactics, and that is beyond my power.
“Conte congratulates me because he knows that I am working hard. I am stronger tactically thanks to him, as are all the Chelsea players because he is a very good coach.”
The Belgian international went on to add that he knows he will get opportunities to play in Morata’s absence, and he fully intends on taking the matter into his own hands and impressing in order to convince Conte that he deserves to be a regular fixture in his plans.
Batshuayi clearly knows how to step up in important moments after scoring the goal that won Chelsea the Premier League title last season, while he scored an all-important winner against Atletico Madrid in the Champions league last month.
It seems strange that he hasn’t been given more chances, with Conte preferring to play others out of position up front instead, but now is the time for him to step up and make his mark.