Antonio Conte Angrily lays down law to Chelsea players in brutal dressing down Ahead of Sunday’s visit to Manchester

Antonio Conte gave his Chelsea players the full hairdryer treatment during an angry inquest into their second-half surrender in Rome and warned it can never happen again.

Ahead of Sunday’s visit of Manchester United, head coach Conte made it clear that any players who do not follow his orders will be left out and he made examples of some of the worst offenders.

Barely anybody escaped the dressing down and even Kenedy, who was an unused substitute during the 3-0 Champions League defeat to Roma, received a lecture after being caught yawning during the meeting at Chelsea’s Cobham training ground.

As revealed in Telegraph Sport a fortnight ago, Conte has become concerned by the behaviour of some his players in recent weeks.

David Luiz was ticked off for his reaction to being substituted in the home draw against Roma after which Conte told his players they must stick together. Charly Musonda was also slapped over the wrists for complaining about a lack of first-team opportunities on Instagram.

But, with his pride dented after being beaten 3-0 on his first return to his native Italy as a manager since leaving his post with the national team, Conte’s patience snapped as he attempts to get his players ready for the visit of United and former Blues manager Jose Mourinho.

Conte accused them of failing to take responsibility on the pitch during the second half in Rome, having substituted captain Gary Cahill in the 56th minute.

He was particularly dismayed by the standard of defending, which has since been mocked on social media. Having switched Cahill to the right side of the back three, Conte was made to look like he had blundered in front of the Roma fans, who took great joy in getting one over the former Juventus player and manager.

Despite the fact many people have predicted it is Conte’s future on the line, the Italian made it clear to his players that he is not fearful of the sack by promising to drop anybody who does not show an immediate improvement.

Conte has already proved that he is not afraid to take on his stars after reminding Diego Costa he was no longer part of his plans in a text message during the summer.

Having defended his players following defeats this season, Conte publically accused them of lacking motivation and hunger against Roma – two things that were the trademark of last season’s Premier League title success.

Chelsea blamed “palpable discord between manager and players” for the decision to dismiss Mourinho in 2015, but, crucially, Conte retains the board’s backing.

They are sympathetic of the fact that Conte’s squad has been hit by injuries and suspensions, and there is also a level of acceptance that the summer transfer window could have gone better.

Injuries to N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater have meant that Tiemoue Bakayoko has had to play with pain in his knee, while Cesc Fabregas has shown signs of fatigue after working himself into the ground.

Rather than creating the start of a wedge between himself and the squad with Thursday’s inquest, many of the senior players are believed to accept they were deserving of a dressing down.

There is also a belief among the squad that greater leadership must be displayed on the pitch by the players, rather than just relying on Conte to find solutions for them.

But Kenedy’s blunder represents a setback for the Brazilian after he had worked hard to get back in favour, following an aborted loan spell at Watford last season and being sent home from Chelsea’s pre-season tour

of China and Singapore.

The 21-year-old appeared to have no long-term future at Stamford Bridge after he and the club were forced to make grovelling apologies for a series of inappropriate social media posts.

He has since worked his way back into Conte’s first-team squad after knuckling down on and off the training ground, and he scored in the Carabao Cup victory over Nottingham Forest.

While Sunday’s visit of United and the need to avoid another humiliating defeat are at the forefront of his mind, there is another problem brewing for Conte as Musonda wants to leave Chelsea in January.

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