ANTONIO Conte insists that Nigeria captain, John Obi Mikel, remains Chelsea’s first team player and would rather wish the player wait for his time.
Addressing the media on Wednesday night after Cesc Fabregas scored the winning goal against Sunderland, Conte described Mikel, Oscar and Branislav Ivanovic as part of his plans for the Blues.
“I wonder what the papers will be saying about Cesc in the next few weeks. It has been said of him that he would be leaving. It is the same with Branislav and Oscar. On Mikel, I get constant queries but I know that both Mikel and Oscar can do as well as Cesc did if they get their chance but I tell you as a coach, it is very difficult. We have been winning, on Saturday we are looking for our 11th consecutive win against a strong side like Crystal Palace.”
“There will be in future when the quality and nature of players like Oscar and Mikel will be adaptable.
However, Mikel insists that he just wants to play, and remains proud of his achievements at Chelsea so far.
“It’s not very nice, especially now when you have kids you just want to do what you can to play,” said the midfielder.
“Wherever it is I just want to play.Legacy is important and I’m very proud and happy that I’ve kept this legacy to be able to achieve what I have achieved.”
However, report on Thursday linked Mikel with a move to China.
Mikel is believed to have secured offers from at least two Chinese clubs. His contract is due to expire on June 30, 2017 and he is free to talk with clubs in January, as is normal for players with only six months remaining on their contracts.
The 29-year-old could follow Oscar, who is set to break the transfer fee record for a player leaving Chelsea, after Shanghai SIPG offered around £52 million to secure the play maker from west London ahead of the January window.
Manchester United, Marseille and Fenerbahce have also added him to their shortlist. Mikel has not played for Chelsea since he travelled to Anfield to face Liverpool under Guus Hiddink last season.
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