Branislav Ivanovic

Branislav Ivanovic | Serbia & Chelsea Superstar

Despite Premier League leaders Chelsea clear to lift the title this week, head coach Antonio Conte has said that the team was still building.

Conte could do a double this term in winning the league and the FA Cup – though they have Arsenal to contend with – but he insists that more is yet to come as the team was in “transition.”

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has admitted that the blues will have to go through a transition period in order to replace players like John obi Mikel and Branislav Ivanovic.

These two players have been the heartbeat of Chelsea over the last decade, even though they have not been spectacular during this period, they were certainly steady and helped the club go through several tough periods with relative ease. Ivanovic and Mikel were allowed to leave the club during the January transfer window. The former joint Zenit St Petersburg and quickly created history by becoming the first player to score at the new Zenit Arena, which will also be hosting Confederations Cup games.

Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndid has revealed that he was a Chelsea fan for long while in Nigeria far before he got the chance to play top flight English football.

Ndidi said Blues stars John Terry and Nigerian international John Obi Mikel were his inspiration to play football growing up as a young boy in Lagos, Nigeria.

Premier League leaders Chelsea are in search for a replacement for right back Victor Moses after the Nigerian picked up an injury that seemed to rattle the team.

The Blues are reportedly scouting Hoffenheim’s Jeremy Toljan and Atalanta’s Andrea Conti. \

Former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic compared his former managers Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti, upon leaving England during the winter transfer window.

The Serbian said that most players would prefer to play under a ‘calm’ Ancelotti than let Mourinho manage them.

Former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic believes that his former teammates would now prefer to play alongside Carlo Ancelotti rather than under Jose Mourinho.

In fact, the Serbian has even gone to suggest that Ancelotti will be the preferred choice of players wherever he goes. The glowing praise comes from a player who has played under some of the top managers in world football. Even which has played under the likes of Luis Felipe Scolari, Guus Hiddink, Ancelotti, Antonio Conte, and Jose Mourinho in his almost decade long time at Stamford Bridge. Even which has recently brought his time at Stamford Bridge to an end after securing a move to Zenit St Petersburg.

After having made over 250 appearances with the Chelsea jersey, BranislavIvanovic has finalized his career at Stamford Bridge as the Serbian completed his move to Zenit Petersburg.

The 32 year old defender penned a 2 and half year long contract with the Russian club.

Former Chelsea star Pat Nevin believes that Antonio Conte could improvise in order to find a replacement for striker Diego Costa when his team take on Bournemouth on Boxing Day.

Costa is suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in the game against Crystal Palace last weekend. The Spanish international has been a major factor behind the club’s 11 match winning run in the Premier League.

Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew has dismissed suggestions that the club are looking to sign Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in the January transfer window.

Ivanovic has been unable to get into the Chelsea team under Antonio Conte. He has gone from being one of the important players into a marginal squad player in the last couple of weeks. Ivanovic was a regular during the days of Jose Mourinho, but he was highly criticised for his poor performances last season. He has played only three minutes of football since Antonio Conte switched to the 3-4-3 formation.

Branislav Ivanovic feels Chelsea let their manager, Antonio Conte down with their first-half performance in the huge 3-0 defeat suffered at the hands of Arsenal which happens to be Chelsea's last defeat in England Premier League since then.

The Blues were two goals down in the count of 14 minutes following strikes from Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott, while Mesut Ozil crowned it with the third goal shortly before the half-time break to put the match to convenience, and Ivanovic has acknowledged that they did not stick to Conte's game plan.