The Nigerian Super Eagle’s tean captain and Chelsea midfielder, John Mikel Obi has finalised showdown talks with the club’s manager after he had been left out of the team by the Italian.
Mikel revealed his intensified efforts to gain an opportunity to play his way back into the team.
The midfielder is yet to play in any Premier League match for Stamford Bridge since the beginning of the season.
The top player disclosed this on his Twitter account where he wrote,
“Fighting every day for my place, like all the guys are, Focus, work hard.”
Mikel had recently faced criticism for his lack of match attention at his London club after representing Nigeria at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Conte, the club’s former Italian manager, was said to be upset with Mikel Obi for his decision to represent his country in the games, in which he had led his Nigerian team mates to win the bronze, the country’s only medal in the competition.
Mikel is competing with in-form N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic for a role as defensive midfielder.
He confirmed this on Tuesday after disclosing that he had discussed with the club on his frustration.
He said, “I hope I will get some playing time against West Ham, but it is down to the manager. ”
“He has been open and honest with me. I respect him for that and he has explained the situation and I totally understand.
“When you have been at a club for a long time, these things happen where a club wants to move forward.
“I just have to be professional, work as hard as I can to try and get back in the team. I work twice as hard every day and it’s because I appreciate the club. ”
Mikel Obi was signed in from Norwegian side Lyn Oslo by the then manager of Chelsea Football Club, Jose Mourinho in 2016.