Patient Conte tight-lipped on transfer targets

Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte is prepared to be patient over the club’s transfer activity this month and again declined to comment on the Blues’ rumoured targets.

Premier League champions Chelsea have been linked with Roma’s Edin Dzeko and had reportedly turned to Stoke’s Peter Crouch, who is 37 on January 30, after West Ham’s Andy Carroll, another reported target, was discovered to have a serious ankle injury.

Should any move for former Liverpool and Tottenham striker Crouch materialise this month it would be a permanent deal, it is understood.