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Antonio Conte says David Luiz is a centre-back for Chelsea

David Luiz waves following victory against Swansea City at Stamford Bridge
Image: David Luiz had said he is happy to play anywhere for Chelsea

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte says he is planning to use David Luiz in his "right position" at centre-back.

Luiz re-joined Chelsea on Deadline Day from Paris Saint-Germain for £30m, having departed the Blues for the Ligue 1 club for a £50m fee two years earlier. 

The Brazil international has played in a variety of positions throughout his career, and despite most often being deployed in central defence he said he is happy to play anywhere for Chelsea.

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However, Conte has now confirmed he intends to play Luiz as a centre-back, which he insists is the 29-year-old's correct position. 

"I think David Luiz is a centre-back, he's played a lot of games in that position," Conte told Chelsea TV. "I know sometimes he's played as a central midfielder but in my mind the idea is to utilise him in the right position which, for me, is centre-back. He's played with Chelsea previously and he will bring a good personality." 

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Conte also brought in former Sunderland and Bolton defender Marcos Alonso on the final day of the transfer window on a five-year deal, and said signing a left-footed full-back was vital for the club. 

Following the international break, Chelsea return to Premier League action against Swansea this weekend, live on Sky Sports' Super Sunday, and Conte admits they will need to integrate the new signings into their defence sooner rather than later.

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"We reached our targets, David Luiz and Marcos Alonso are two good signings for us," Conte added. "Now we have to work with them because I think they can improve our squad.

"We need to put them into our idea of football. Now we must work on our defensive situation and with the defensive line. We need to improve our physical and tactical condition.

"After the international break it's always very tough to restart because many players don't arrive back until the end of the week, but we must quickly find our concentration and be focused because we know we play a tough game against Swansea and we want to prepare in the best way." 

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