Antonio Conte has remained coy and non-committal about his relationship with Chelsea defender David Luiz.
Luiz was an important part of the Chelsea defence that stood tall in their Premier League winning campaign last year and the Brazilian also started the current season as the centre piece of their rearguard.
But Conte shifted to other options at the back in recent weeks and Luiz was dropped from the squad in Chelsea’s 1-0 win over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge ahead of the international break.
The Chelsea manager revealed that Luiz is back in the squad ahead of the West Brom game this weekend and insisted his decision to drop the centre-back against Manchester United was purely tactical.
However, Conte refused to dwell on his relationship with the player and is keener to talk about the team as a whole.
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The Chelsea boss said in a press conference when asked about his decision to drop Luiz: “It was a technical decision and when it’s a technical decision every player has to react well.”
Asked about his relationship with the player, Conte said: “I sit here to talk about the team before an important game against West Brom and not to speak about a single player.
“I like to speak about the team, the next game and I think that’s the most important thing.”
