Antonio Conte has admitted losing Nemanja Matic was a "great loss" for Chelsea, but suggested the huge sum rivals Manchester United paid to sign the midfielder played a part in his transfer to Old Trafford.
United sealed a £40m deal for Matic in late July after the Serbian had been left out of Conte's squad for Chelsea's tour of the Far East following the arrival of Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco.
Matic, who had two spells at Stamford Bridge, was subsequently reunited with Jose Mourinho at United who labelled the 29-year-old a "genius" and put the midfielder straight into his side to face Sampdoria last week.
Conte recently hinted the decision to sell Matic to Premier League rivals United was out of his hands, and the Chelsea boss has once again talked about the transfer - saying the "crazy" market played a part in Matic leaving west London.
"Matic knows very well what I think about him," Conte told Sky Sports at the Premier League launch on Wednesday.
"The importance for me about this player because, I repeat, he's a really good and strong player - and important for our team.
"Sometimes you must accept this crazy transfer market and sometimes you must accept different decisions.
"But I repeat for sure he is a great loss."
