Chelsea boss Antonio Conte insists his squad is in transition this season.

The Blues have lost the likes of John Terry, Nemanja Matic, John Mikel Obi and Branislav Ivanovic over the last year.

"Those players were very important because they transferred to the other players the sense of belonging at this club," Conte explains to the official Chelsea website.

"We have lost a lot of players who wrote so much history at this club. Now we are trying to build something important with younger players. This season, we brought young players to the squad. Our average age is lower. I think we are doing a really good job.

"I am very happy because I have seen my players show great ability at adapting themselves, and changing to a system by finding new solutions and memorised play."

"We have worked very hard to improve our team and to create a fundamental base that is very important for the present, but especially for the future.

"In this situation, you must work very hard, and at the same time you must have great patience. Everyone wants to win, everyone wants to reach great results in a short time, but you must understand this moment takes time. And this is a really important moment for Chelsea."