Chelsea Transfer News: Antonio Conte Addresses Andy Carroll Rumours

Antonio Conte has neither confirmed nor denied reports linking Chelsea with West Ham United striker Andy Carroll. Blues boss Conte said: "As I've said before, I don't know. I gave my opinion to the club but the club then decides the players we can buy or we can sell," per Rory O'Callaghan of Sky Sports.

Conte's noncommittal comes hot on the heels of rumours about a possible January bid from Chelsea for Carroll. The Daily Mail's Simon Jones noted how Conte is keen on a loan deal for the West Ham target man since he doesn't have confidence in Michy Batshuayi as Alvaro Morata's deputy.

Jones noted how talks between the Blues and the Hammers had already taken place.

Despite Conte's apparent lack of faith in Batshuayi, evidenced by handing the Belgium international just two starts in the Premier League, the former Marseille striker has rarely let Chelsea down. In fact, Batshuayi has scored seven goals across all competitions at senior level this season.

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By contrast, regular starter Morata is struggling of late. The Spaniard missed three one-on-one chances during Wednesday's 2-2 draw away to Arsenal.

Morata is now second in the league when it comes to missing "big chances," according to Opta stats (h/t MailOnline's Ben Church). As Morata has struggled, Carroll has enjoyed a mini recent revival, with the 28-year-old scoring twice to help the Hammers beat West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday.

Those goals moved West Ham out of the bottom three, underlining Carroll's value to manager David Moyes' squad. Moyes has claimed no knowledge of the links between his striker and Chelsea, per Football.London's Sam Inkersole.

Carroll would offer Chelsea traditional target-man qualities. His aerial attributes would provide the ideal complement for the pace and flair of wide forwards Eden Hazard, Pedro and Willian.

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The same dynamic worked wonders when Chelsea won the title last season with Diego Costa leading the line. It's also been effective at times between Hazard and Morata.

Chelsea would be wise to add a natural striker who can play with his back to goal like Carroll to boost the depth of a talented but thin forward line.