‘This is why we will fail’ - Chelsea fans slate Conte after striker comments ahead of tonight’s game

The Chelsea fans here in the Transfer Tavern are beyond nervous today. Indeed, in just a few hours, the Blues will take on old rivals Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the second-leg their finely poised Champions League round of 16 in what promises to be a huge game.

It’s a fixture that has provided so much enjoyment over the years, though with the English champions looking unlikely to finish in the top four this season, the hopes of a successful campaign largely rest on a seemingly unlikely victory against the Blaugrana tonight.

With Antonio Conte’s side struggling to score goals of late, the kind of riches available to Barcelona in attacking positions are already scaring some of our west London locals. In fact, Chelsea actually played without a striker at Stamford Bridge three weeks ago, though Conte’s reveal that Alvaro Morata is in contention for the game during his press conference yesterday has barely cheered fans up.

Conte says Morata is also in contention for a place tomorrow and he has seen a great will from the player to fight for that place.

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) March 13, 2018

The Spaniard has struggled of late, leading many supporters on social media to urge Conte to leave their club-record man out and play January signing Olivier Giroud instead! Here’s a closer look at the calls on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/druidzy/status/973635119004209152