Antonio Conte gets into the thick of things in training as Chelsea prepare for season-opener against Burnley
- Chelsea begin the defence of their Premier League title this weekend
- The Blues host Sean Dyche's Burnley at Stamford Bridge on Saturday
- Antonio Conte looks set to hand Antonio Rudiger his debut in central defence
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Antonio Conte looks raring to go as he plans to mastermind Chelsea's Premier League title defence ahead of their season opener against Burnley on Saturday.
The Blues romped to a spectacular triumph in May, winning a record 30 of their 38 matches in the Italian's first season.
And despite losing the traditional curtain-raising Community Shield on penalties against Arsenal, Conte's side are among the favourites to take the crown this year.
Antonio Conte took an active part in Chelsea's training session on Thursday afternoon
The Italian has his hands in the air as his players battle for possession
Conte walks away in delight during the session at their Cobham training ground
The Chelsea boss was preparing his squad ahead of the start of the new season
Chelsea took to their Cobham training ground on Thursday, two days ahead of hosting Sean Dyche's Clarets at Stamford Bridge.
Key to their success last year was Conte's reversion to the 3-4-3 system at half-time during a 3-0 defeat by Arsenal in September last year.
The Blues proceeded to embark on a 13-match winning streak after the switch, which saw Victor Moses and Marcos Alonso star as full-backs with Gary Cahill, David Luiz and Cesar Azpilicueta part of a back three.
Conte's plans for the new season have been up in the air following the arrival of Antonio Rudiger in a £31million deal from Roma last month.
Chelsea begin the defence of their Premier League crown at home to Burnley on Saturday
David Luiz and Gary Cahill wore bibs and look set to start in a three-man defence once again
New signing Antonio Rudiger could also make his debut after he was also spotted in a bib
The German could well be handed a Premier League debut on Saturday if Conte's training session on Thursday is anything to go by.
The new boy wore a bib alongside fellow defenders Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill and Alonso in training, perhaps hinting at Conte's plans for Burnley.
But the Italian boss has cut a troubled figure this summer after failing to land his top transfer targets.
The Blues have struggled in pre-season, winning just once against Arsenal while losing to Inter Milan and Bayern Munich.
Cesar Azpilicueta was a star performer last season and looks set to keep his place
Belgian striker Michy Batshuayi wrestles with reserve goalkeeper Eduardo
N'Golo Kante will be seeking a third successive Premier League triumph this season
They also fell to defeat on penalties against the Gunners in the Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday.
Chelsea were heavily linked with Romelu Lukaku before he joined Manchester United, who also took Nemanja Matic from Stamford Bridge for £40million, while the Blues have so far failed to prise Alex Sandro away from Juventus.
'It’s very important to try to find the right solution, to try to improve the squad,' Conte said this week at the Premier League launch.
Antonio Conte has admitted he is still looking to make improvements to his squad
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