LONDON -- Chelsea coach Antonio Conte says he is waiting for Juan Cuadrado's situation "to become more clear" as talks for a loan to Juventus intensify.
Cuadrado was not included in Chelsea's matchday squad for Monday's 2-1 win over West Ham, and on Thursday the winger's agent Alessandro Lucci was quoted as telling Italian TV station SportItalia that he would fly to London on Friday to try and convince the Blues to let his client return to Turin.
Conte fought hard to convince Cuadrado to come back to Chelsea this summer and prove himself in England, but now concedes that he doesn't know what the Colombian's future holds.
"For Cuadrado we are waiting, waiting on the situation," Conte said. "It must become more clear about his position. Now he's Chelsea's player. Today he had training with us."
Conte has been reluctant to publicly discuss Chelsea's transfer targets since arriving at Stamford Bridge, and he declined to comment on Dinamo Zagreb manager Zlatko Kranjcar's claim that Portugal international goalkeeper Eduardo will join the Blues next week.
But the Italian did confirm that Chelsea are prioritising defensive reinforcements before the end of August, with Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly a long-term target and Torino centre-back Nikola Maksimovic heavily linked in recent days.
"It's very difficult to speak about the transfer policy before an important game, for me," he added. "It's difficult to speak with the press about discussions I have with the club. I speak with the club at the right moment. That's difficult before a game.
"But we are awaiting the right solution to improve Chelsea. We need to sign some players. We are now a few players down, in the defence. We only have a few players. But we are working together, me and the club, to find the right solution."
Conte also confirmed that he has no new injury worries ahead of Saturday's clash with Watford at Vicarage Road, though Kurt Zouma remains unavailable as he continues his recovery from a serious knee injury.