Chelsea
boss Antonio Conte insists he would not swap Diego Costa for Romelu Lukaku,
despite the Everton striker being linked with a return to Stamford Bridge
over the summer.
Conte's side face Everton at Goodison Park in the Sky Live clash in the
first part of a title-chasers Super Sunday.
Belgium international Lukaku tops the Premier League scoring charts with 24
goals, while Chelsea talisman Costa has struck 19 times in league action.
But Conte remained coy about comparisons between the two prolific forwards,
although he did admit his side must work hard to nullify the threat posed by
Lukaku.
Asked if he would rather have Costa or Lukaku, Conte said: "As I've said
before, for me my players are the best in the world. I wouldn't change my
players with any other players.
"I think that Lukaku is a really good player, he's scoring a lot of goals
this season.
"You have to pay him great attention but it's always the same, we study the
opponent and we try to find the best solution to stop them, about single
players and about the team.
"Yes we must pay great attention to Lukaku, but also Everton's other
players. They have a lot of good players with good technique."
Chelsea play at Goodison Park in a 2.05pm kick-off before Premier League
title rivals Tottenham take on north London rivals Arsenal at White Hart
Lane at 4.30pm.
Conte's side then face strugglers Sunderland and Middlesbrough, as well as
West Brom and Watford, before the end of the campaign.
In contrast, Spurs face another London derby with West Ham and two other
away games - against Leicester and Hull - with a home match against
Manchester United also on the horizon.
But Conte is not convinced they have the upper hand in their bid to regain
the Premier League crown they ceded to Leicester last season, insisting all
games are tough at this stage of the run-in.
"In this part of the season every game is very tough for many reasons, you
know that you have to win," he added.
"When you have to play with this target it's not simple, it's not easy. Not
only for us, but [also] for Tottenham.
"But to arrive here, a different country, a different language, to bring my
philosophy, to bring my idea of football is not easy. To fight for the title
and reach the final of the FA Cup is a great achievement."
Chelsea's game at Everton could be the toughest they face in the run-in and
Conte is not underestimating the threat they pose.
"Everton are a really good team, a strong team with great players in their
squad, good quality. A physical team also," said Conte.
"They have a good manager and play exciting football. For sure it will be a
really tough game for us but at the end of the season I think every game
becomes tough for many different reasons.
"When they play at home they are strong. For us it is very important to look
at ourselves, to prepare very well for this type of game."
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