Antonio Conte’s quest to land one of his priority summer targets has been dealt a huge blow with the news that Chelsea bosses have refused to enter a bidding war for Spanish international striker Alvaro Morata. The 24-year-old has been identified as the player to replace Diego Costa who is set to leave Stamford Bridge this summer to return to Atletico Madrid (although he will spend six months on-loan at Las Palmas due to the club’s transfer embargo).
 

The Blues head out on their summer tour of the Far-East today with Costa remaining behind after being told he’s no longer part of the Italian’s plans in West London. Having already missed out on Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United, Morata was next on Conte’s list of targets but according to The Daily Star, the power brokers will only back their manager so far and with AC Milan reportedly ready to offer the player €10M-a-season to head back to Serie A, Conte may have to rethink his strategy once again.
 

Torino frontman Andrea Belotti and Gabon international striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are two more candidates but they too are believed to be ready to talk to Milan officials about a potential summer move.