Chelsea Transfer News: David Luiz Set to Leave After Clash with Antonio Conte

David Luiz is reportedly set to leave Chelsea in January after falling out with Blues manager Antonio Conte.

According to Steve Bates of the Mirror, Luiz clashed with Conte after Chelsea's 3-0 defeat to Roma in October. His only appearance since was against Qarabag in the UEFA Champions League.

As a result of the words exchanged by the pair, the Brazilian is set to move on next month with Juventus said to be the top candidates to snap him up.

Following the Roma defeat, Luiz was dropped from the matchday squad entirely against Manchester United. Per Bates, Conte then offered the following response to questions over his future: "He has to work really hard otherwise he is on the bench or in the stands."

He was then an unused substitute against West Bromwich Albion and Liverpool. ESPN FC's Liam Twomey wasn't overly impressed with Luiz in the warm-up for the former:

The defender returned for 90 minutes against Qarabag but has not featured since, with Conte attributing his absence to a knee injury, per Goal:

Even had Luiz been fit, he has lost his place in the Chelsea side to Andreas Christensen, who has been superb since his return from loan in the summer.

The 30-year-old was among Chelsea's stronger performers last year as they won the Premier League title, but amid Christensen's return and the recruitment of Antonio Rudiger in the summer, the Blues are not as reliant on Luiz's presence in the squad.

What's more, the defender's error-prone tendencies have been back on show at times this season—while he was hardly alone in putting in a poor showing against Roma in the 3-0 defeat, he was particularly disappointing.

As such, allowing him to leave in January would hardly be disastrous, and if the Blues can receive a hefty fee for his services it could help them strengthen their squad in other areas ahead of the second half of the campaign.