Antonio Conte admits the continued absence of striker Alvaro Morata is causing Chelsea a number of problems.
Morata, Chelsea’s club-record signing, has been struggling with a back injury that ruled him out of the team’s last four fixtures.
The former Real Madrid star will not feature on Monday evening when the reigning Premier League champions face Watford.
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Asked about the striker’s progress on Friday afternoon, manager Conte said: ‘Alvaro is still out and I hope to be able to solve this situation.
‘For a problem in his back, he’s missing a lot of games which is not a good situation. I hope in the future that the medical department can solve this situation.’
Chelsea have struggled since the turn of the new year – only winning two of their nine games in all competitions – and were beaten at home by Bournemouth on Wednesday.
‘The lesson is always the same, there’s no easy game in this league,’ Conte said of his side’s most recent setback. ‘I think we knew this.
‘Bournemouth played a good game. For many reasons we didn’t perform well.’
Fresh reports this week suggest Chelsea are losing faith in Conte, with the 48-year-old reportedly set for a return to Italy at the end of the season.
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‘There’s always lots of speculation and rumours surrounding me,’ Conte added. ‘The only thing I can tell you now is I still have 18 months left at Chelsea.
‘My will and desire is to stay here and continue to work. I don’t see any problems about this.’
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