Chelsea vs. Stoke City: Antonio Conte's Key Pre-Match Press Conference Comments

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has dismissed reports that Real Madrid could be set to move for Thibaut Courtois in the summer and played down the possibility of the Blues doing extensive business in January.

According to Chelsea's official Twitter feed, he said:

Louise Hepburn of The Sun had reported in an exclusive that Real would move for Courtois at the end of the season, playing on the Belgian's love for Spain and his desire to return to its capital. 

Further, Conte is not anticipating many arrivals in January, per ESPN FC's Liam Twomey:

Per Twomey, he added: "I don't like to spend money only to spend money. I prefer to buy players who are adapted to our system."

The former Italy boss believes there will be no possibility of unsettling his squad with new arrivals, though, according to The Sun's Tom Sheen: "I don’t worry about this because when you have a good group, a new player can come into the group very easily. In a simple way."

However, following Oscar's departure to Shanghai SIPG, it seems Conte will look to his youth players to replace the Brazilian rather than dipping into the transfer market: "Kenedy and [Charly] Musonda have come back from their loan because they didn’t play a lot, so we think it’s important to stay with us and so we can evaluate the best situation for them and us."

He added: "We have a lot of young players in the squad and I trust in them. With Ruben [Loftus-Cheek], [Nathaniel] Chalobah and also [Kurt] Zouma. If we can find the solution at home then it’s important to look around."

While many Blues fans would likely have welcomed the prospect of a marquee signing to replace the midfielder, Chelsea have come under fire in recent years for the vast numbers of young players sent out on loan each season rather than given a chance at Stamford Bridge—it's an encouraging sign they're willing to look in-house to fill their need.

Looking ahead to Chelsea's clash with Stoke City, the Italian urged his team to avoid complacency when they face the Potters on New Year's Eve:

Per Sheen, he added: "I think the most important things in our head must be to continue to work very hard and be focused game by game. And remember this league is not easy and that we are doing very well."

Chelsea have won their last 12 league games in succession, but Conte played down the notion Chelsea already have the title in the bag:

He also believes the second half of the season could be difficult with teams likely to sit back and defend when they face the Blues, per Sheen:

"

I think in the first part of the season I always assume teams will be aggressive and put pressure on to come and win.

When you face a team that stay at the top, sometimes you have a plan and you wait and stay more defensive.

I hope to find games open and find the opponent open to play.

"

Indeed, as impressive as the Blues have been, the gap is hardly insurmountable at this stage, particularly if their title rivals take any points from them in the second half of the campaign.

Conte's cautious approach should have its intended effect: to stop his players getting carried away and losing focus.

Stoke are winless in their last four games, so Chelsea should have a strong chance of extending their winning streak to 13 games on Saturday.