Dixon: Llorente would be a good addition for Conte’s Chelsea

Kerry Dixon knows what it takes to score in a Chelsea shirt, and the Blues legend insists boss Antonio Conte would be making the right decision if he does make a move for Swansea’s Fernando Llorente.

With transfer rumours swirling in January, a move for the 31-year-old Spain international would surely leave youngster Michy Batshuayi, whom Chelsea forked out £33million for in the summer, out in the cold.

Llorente has worked with Conte before at Juventus, and Dixon – regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever strikers having scored 193 goals during his time at Stamford Bridge – believes swapping a young striker for a more experienced one would be a smart move.

“It makes sense to me,” he said. “Batshuayi was bought by Chelsea with a pretty hefty price tag and for a striker of that ilk, you would expect a certain amount of games which, due to the form of Diego Costa, he hasn’t been able to achieve.

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“I fully understand if they do put him out [on loan] for game time. If he goes to West Ham and proves he can score in the Premier League then his value on the transfer market, if indeed Chelsea were to sell, would at least be the equivalent of what we bought him for.

“Llorente is somebody that Conte can say, ‘I have worked with him before’. He would come in and be a squad player and be capable of doing a job for us, if indeed Diego Costa was injured or suspended.

“The downside to Llorente is we haven’t seen much of him. We haven’t seen much, really, of him doing well and having the pressures of coming in and doing well in the Premier League.

“But we will see and if it does happen we have to go with what Conte is saying. If Diego Costa stays fit, I can’t see him playing too many games.”