Antonio Conte loves a good moan. The Chelsea boss complained that his squad was "too small" prior to the 2017-18 season and went on to claim that he wouldn't be able to win the title "with only eleven players" after a less than spectacular start to the campaign.
What Conte seems to be forgetting is that he has a massive 33 players out on loan. He also brought in six new players over the summer - spending no less than £185 million in the process. There are also players like Matej Delač and Wallace Oliveira who can't even get squad numbers at the club. So what exactly is the Italian going on about?
To put the situation into perspective and illustrate why Conte has no right to whine, we're going to take a look at the strongest team that could be made from the players he's opted to loan out. This team could arguably be competitive in Premier League and all of them are potentially available to Chelsea! Here they are...
Jamal Blackman
Jamal Blackman is a 24-year-old former England U19 international goalkeeper who is currently on loan at Championship high-flyers Sheffield United, where he is impressing. Blackman has also played a season in League Two for Wycombe and in the Swedish top flight with Östersunds FK.
Matt Miazga
Matt Miazga is a full United States international defender who is currently on loan at Vitesse in the Dutch top flight, where he is a first team regular in a team competing at the top. As well as earning three senior caps for the U.S.A., the 22-year-old has experienced the Premier League with his parent club and used to be an MLS regular with New York Red Bulls.
Kenneth Omeruo
Kenneth Omeruo is a 23-year-old defender who has 31 full international caps for Nigeria. He is currently on loan at Kasımpaşa S.K., who are regular "also rans" in the Turkish top flight. Omeruo has also played for Alanyaspor in the same league, Middlesbrough in the Championship and ADO Den Haag in the top division in the Netherlands.
Kurt Zouma
Kurt Zouma needs no introduction. The 23-year-old has already appeared 47 times for Chelsea in the top flight and is currently on loan at Stoke City in the same division. He has two full caps for France and was formerly a regular for Saint-Étienne in Ligue 1. He would get into most Premier League teams.
Jérémie Boga
Jérémie Boga is a 20-year-old midfielder who, having played for France at various youth levels, has a full cap for the Ivory Coast team. Having started Chelsea's first game of this campaign, he's currently on loan at Birmingham City in the Championship, but has also appeared for full seasons in La Liga with Granada and in Ligue 1 with Rennes.
Mario Pašalić
Mario Pašalić is a 22-year-old midfielder who has four full caps for Croatia. He is currently on loan at Spartak Moscow in Russia, where he is a regular member of the first team and has played in the Champions League. Pašalić has also spent time on loan at Elche in La Liga, at Monaco in Ligue 1 and at Milan in Serie A. He was previously Hadjuk Split's star player in his homeland.
Marco van Ginkel
Marco van Ginkel is a seven-cap full Netherlands international who plays in midfield. The 24-year-old was signed from Vitesse in his homeland's top flight, where he was a regular first-teamer, and is currently back on loan in the Netherlands at PSV, for whom he has played in the Europa League. He has also spent time on loan at Milan in Serie A and at Stoke in the Premier League.
Lewis Baker
Lewis Baker is a 22-year-old former England U21 midfielder who is currently on loan at Middlesbrough in the Championship. He has previously spent time on loan at Sheffield Wednesday in the same division, MK Dons in League one and at Vitesse in the Netherlands' top flight. He made his Chelsea debut in an FA Cup game back in 2014 .
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Ruben Loftus-Cheek is another player who really needs no introduction. He's a 21-year-old midfielder who is currently gaining Premier League experience on loan at Crystal Palace, where he is a first team regular. A full England international as of the recent international break, Loftus-Cheek has already played 32 times for Chelsea - including 22 games in the Premier League and two appearances in European competition.
Lucas Piazon
Lucas Piazon is a 23-year-old Brazil U23 international forward who is currently on loan at Fulham in the Championship. He has extensive previous loan experience in La Liga with Málaga, in the Eredivisie with Vitesse, in the Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt and with another Championship club in the form of Reading. He has also made three senior appearances for Chelsea - one of which was in the top flight.
Tammy Abraham
Tammy Abraham is the final player who really doesn't need introducing. The 20-year-old striker is currently on loan at Swansea City, where he is one of the top scorers in the Premier League this season, having bagged four goals in his first nine games. He spent last season on loan at Bristol City in the Championship, where he was the second top scorer in the division with 23 goals. Like Loftus-Cheek, he's a full England international as of the recent international break and he has appeared twice for Chelsea in the top flight.
Amongst Chelsea's other players out on loan, there's a full Czech international defender in Tomáš Kalas, a full Jamaican international defender in Michael Hector, a full Nigerian international defender in Ola Aina, a Serbian U21 international midfielder in Danilo Pantić, a full Ivorian international midfielder in Victorien Angban, a Brazilian U20 international midfielder in Nathan, an English U21 international midfielder in Kasey Palmer, and an English U20 international striker in Izzy Brown - and that's barely scratching the surface!
Why is Conte ignoring these players? In saying what he has said about his squad being too small, he is indeed essentially ignoring their existence. Do these players not deserve a chance in times of need? The Italian might unearth a gem if he grants them that kind of opportunity! Granted, the likes of Jamal Blackman might be a long way from getting such a chance, but there are several players who shouldn't be.
When Alvaro Morato was injured, Conte opted to play without an out-and-out striker - even with Michy Batshuayi available, as the manager doesn't seem to fully trust the Belgian. Wouldn't that have been an ideal time to recall the prolific Tammy Abraham or Lucas Piazon? In fact, hasn't Abraham's form for Bristol City and Swansea warranted a chance at Stamford Bridge regardless of any other factors?
The Blues have also found themselves short of an experienced centre-back on a couple of occasions this term, due to the suspensions handed out to Gary Cahill and David Luiz. Instead of making a big deal of it, shouldn't the club have simply recalled the very talented Kurt Zouma or Matt Miazga?
Why aren't these players getting an opportunity? More to the point, why are they being flat-out ignored? John Terry recently left Stamford Bridge after 22 years - and the fact that he was arguably the last homegrown talent to make a major success of himself at Chelsea says everything you need to know about how they go about their business.
What do you think about Antonio Conte's claim that Chelsea's squad is too small? With 33 players out on loan, is he crazy to say such a thing? Which of the loanees do you think should be recalled and given a chance? Have your say in the comments!
