Antonio Conte certainly fired up controversy with his transfer activity this summer.

Never before has a manager fresh from winning the Premier League title been under so much pressure entering their title defence than the Italian, never mind when Burnley ramped up the pressure with a win at Stamford Bridge.

The Diego Costa saga was a constant, negative undercurrent all summer with the popular figure being told over text that he had no future at the club.

The likes of David Luiz and Cesc Fabregas kept in contact with the club's top scorer of the past three seasons as he was confined to exile in Brazil before eventually returning to Atletico Madrid.

Then there was Conte's general frustration with a lack of funds and ambition for purchases over the transfer window.

The height of this irritation came on deadline day when the planned approach for Fernando Llorente culminated in a whimsical £5 million bid and the move for Ross Barkley dissolved simultaneously.

Chelsea have also been rinsed all season long for their sale of Nemanja Matic - a regular starter in two title winning campaigns - to close rivals Manchester United.

Besides, even Jose Mourinho himself was surprised, revealing: "I was surprised when [Matic's] agent called me to say 'do you want him?'

"I was surprised, but he's an agent I know well. Normally he's very direct and objective, he doesn't waste time, he doesn't try to get people to be interested in his players to improve their situation at their club."

However, none of those controversy-stirring events of the summer compare to one decision in the mind of Willian and it concerns Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

He lamented: "I don't know why he is at Crystal Palace now," according to Goal.com

"I don't know why. He has to come back!

"He is strong, he has quality. He has a great future."

Willian had a first-hand demonstration of exactly how much Loftus-Cheek has improved this season during Brazil and England's clash on Tuesday.

The Chelsea loanee executed a commanding performance in midfield having freshly garnered the Man of the Match award in the friendly with Germany.

If the 21-year-old can maintain his current form with Crystal Palace then few fans will be surprised if Willian gets his wish but, to avoid Nathaniel Chalobah's fate, he'll want a game-time guarantee.

At least Conte wasn't fool-hardy enough to sell Loftus-Cheek permanently. 

Do you think Chelsea were right to loan out Loftus-Cheek this summer? Have your say in the comments section below.