Conte thinks Chelsea would be relegated if he worried about keeping players happy

Antonio Conte has warned his players that he could not care less whether or not they are happy, claiming Chelsea would be in danger of being relegated if he pandered to their emotions.

Eden Hazard has completed only one full 90 minutes in his last eight games and is due to be rested when Chelsea face Norwich in the FA Cup third-round replay on Wednesday night.

Conte is planning to give a rare chance to striker Michy Batshuayi, who is keen to leave Chelsea during this transfer window, and David Luiz, whom he fell out with earlier this season.

Willian and Pedro, who have spent more time on the substitutes’ bench than they would have liked, are also expected to come in but Conte insisted he is not trying to keep anyone happy with his squad rotation.

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Asked whether or not Hazard has been content with being substituted so regularly in recent weeks, Conte replied: “This is not important. I'm the coach. I decide. It's not important if one player is happy or not.

“Only here [in England] is there this situation. You are very worried about whether a player is happy or not. This is not important. My first task is to do the best for the team and the club. Not to make every player happy. Otherwise we'd risk finishing 20th in the table.

“Every press conference there is always this question about whether I'm worried about making my players happy. No. I'm worried to win.”

Player power has been a problem for Chelsea during the Roman Abramovich era but Conte learnt that the best managers do not tolerate it during his own career as a midfielder.

“Every manager that I have had in my career, when I was a player, a footballer, one of the first things they taught me was this - it's not important to make players happy,” said Conte. “The most important thing is to win and to try to be honest in your choice. To try to have in every situation loyalty. To be honest. If you behave this way, not one person can tell you something.

“Maybe in the first moment, a player, maybe, could be angry. But then, after they reflect, they understand you are an honest person and every choice is for the best for the team and not because one player is more 'favoured' than others. I learned this from my coaches, from [Marcello] Lippi, [Giovanni] Trapattoni, [Arrigo] Sacchi, many coaches that I had in my past.”

One player who will certainly be happy under Conte is 17-year-old Ethan Ampadu, who will make his third Chelsea start against Norwich.

Ampadu will line-up in a three-man defence with Luiz and Conte believes Chelsea have got themselves a rare gem.

“As I said before, he deserves to play,” said Conte. “He's showing in every game that that he's ready. To be ready to face this type of game. To play with the right concentration. To be ready physically and tactically. To play at this level. This is unusual for a player who is only 17 years old.

“At the same time, that shows that age is not important. The most important thing is that you show, when I give you the chance to play, you repay me with a great, with a good performance. We are talking about a really good prospect for Chelsea, for the present and the future.”

Chelsea have not scored in their last three games and the club are attempting to boost Conte’s options by trying to sign a striker this month. The Italian ideally wants a target man and they have approached West Ham United over a move for Andy Carroll.

Should Carroll or another striker sign, then Batshuayi will be allowed to join Sevilla on loan but Conte expects the Belgian to be focused on Chelsea on Wednesday night.

“Michy Batshuayi is Chelsea's player and he's in our squad,” said Conte. “On Wednesday, he has to play. He's Chelsea's player and he has this possibility to show he deserves to play for Chelsea. Now, this is the reality. This is the truth. Then, in the future, I don't know what will happen. The final decision is for the club, not for me.”