Conte praises contribution of Hazard, Willian and Pedro

Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte hailed the contribution of Eden Hazard, Pedro and Willian as the trio combined in devastating fashion to brush aside Huddersfield Town 3-1 in the Premier League.

Hazard started as a makeshift centre forward in the absence of Alvaro Morata through injury, with Pedro and Willian dovetailing beautifully behind him.

Willian was the most effective of the three, setting up Tiemoue Bakayoko for the Blues' opener after 23 minutes before heading in a second just before the interval at the John Smith's Stadium.

The Brazilian then turned provider again five minutes into the second half as he set up Pedro to whip a shot into the top corner from 15 yards.

Conte was impressed with the contribution of his attacking players and highlighted the performance of Bakayoko, who has come under scrutiny for his displays since arriving from Monaco.

"I have decided on this solution and this is not the first time with these players," he told BT Sport.

"I think they are very good technically and have good combination play – they played very well today.

"I think he [Bakayoko] played a very good game. He is a young player, a good guy with great potential. He played well with and without the ball and was always focused."

Conte made four changes from the side that suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat to West Ham last week – something he believes is vital given the crowded nature of the fixture list at this time of year.

"I think that rotation is necessary for us," he added.

"It’s good to always keep the chance for every player to show that he deserves to play.

"I like it when we have the possibility to rotate players. It is not possible for players to play every three days when they are tired. When you have this response it is good for the players, coach and club."