Antonio Conte’s irritation at the lack of strikers in his squad has been inflamed by the fact that Chelsea offered Swansea City just £5 million for Fernando Llorente. The Spain striker, 32, eventually joined Tottenham Hotspur on transfer deadline day for £11.5 million after Swansea rejected Chelsea’s bid earlier in the week, leading Conte to conclude that the club were never serious about signing him. Conte first asked Chelsea to sign Llorente in January, but the board was reluctant to make a major investment in a player with little resale value, and also had doubts about his mobility.

Chelsea offered Swansea less than half the fee for Llorente that was accepted from Tottenham MATTHEW CHILDS/ACTION IMAGES/REUTERS

Newcastle interest grows

There are three separate groups of potential investors conducting due diligence at Newcastle United in addition to PCP Capital Partners, which is run by