Blues midfielder John Obi Mikel has said that there is absolutely no way he would swap his Olympic bronze medal for a place in Antonio Conte’s first-team squad.
Nigeria boss Gernot Rohr hinted earlier this week that Mikel may have been frozen out by the Chelsea boss for choosing to represent his home nation in Brazil.
Mikel has not played a single minute this season even despite helping Nigeria to third place in Rio this summer.
However, Mikel claims he has no regrets about his decision.
“I have never been a guy who makes excuses in life and never shy away from responsibilities.
“Yes, maybe people will say the new manager was upset I left and went to the Olympics, that I didn’t have a pre-season with the team.
“He probably thinks I don’t care about the team, things like that.
“But I don’t want to use those excuses. I have to keep training hard and make sure I change the manager’s mind. If not, then we’ll see what happens in January.
“But, no, I would never swap my Olympic medal for a place back in the Chelsea team.
“One thing you have to do in life as a man is that when you make a decision, or a sacrifice, you have to deal with it.
“You have to stand by your decision. You have to live with it.
“I have not one single regret in going to the Olympics. And I will not trade my medal for anything.
“It’s what I deserve. I worked hard for it, so why would I trade it for something else a place in the Chelsea squad?”
