Antonio Conte: 'Chelsea deserved win over Bournemouth'

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has said that he believes his side deserved their 1-0 victory over Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium this evening, but admitted that they could have been more clinical in front of goal.

Eden Hazard scored the only goal of the game on the south coast as Chelsea climbed back into the top four of the Premier League table, but only after Alvaro Morata in particular had spurned a couple of clear chances in the first half.

The champions did at least keep their first clean sheet in seven attempts at the other end, though, and Conte was pleased with some elements of his side's performance.

"I think we deserved to win because we played good football. When you have a lot of chances to score, I think you must do it. To keep the result to only 1-0 can be dangerous. I think today that if I have to find a negative aspect, we could be more clinical," he told reporters.

"We must be pleased for the clean sheet. It's OK when you don't concede a goal, it means you are finding solidity which is very important for a team like Chelsea. We played a good game with a good balance and finally I think we deserved to win.

"Eden needs to be involved in our football because this type of player wants to play, but it is important to try different situations. I think he played a good game and the team are playing very well together. Now it's important to rest and prepare for the game with Roma in the Champions League."

The victory also sees Chelsea close the gap to leaders Manchester City back to nine points.