Conte praises players after Blues win

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Antonio Conte admitted Chelsea’s inability to score a second goal against Southampton left him feeling tense.

Marcos Alonso’s brilliant free-kick secured the points for the Blues, whose 1-0 victory was their eighth win in 10 matches.

But they had plenty of chances in what was a one-sided game at times – and boss Conte afterwards called for his team to be more clinical.

The Italian said: “When the score is only 1-0 despite you creating many chances to score the second goal then you don’t stay relaxed.

“This season we created many chances and must be more accurate with our chances, because when you score more than one goal you can stay more relaxed – me and my players.”

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Nevertheless, Conte was pleased with the performance in a more resounding win than the scoreline might suggest.

“I am happy because I saw the right concentration by my players and we finished with a clean sheet, which is important,” he said.

“I think it was a good win and a good job by all of my players.

“I said in my press conference before the game that we had to pay great attention because Southampton are a good team.

“I’m happy because my players played a great game with great concentration and we deserved to win.”