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Tammy Abraham, on loan at Swansea, made his senior England debut last week
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, currently at Crystal Palace, also impressed for England
Antonio Conte said they are the 'future of Chelsea' and should be out on loan

Published: 12:08 EDT, 17 November 2017 | Updated: 12:08 EDT, 17 November 2017

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Antonio Conte has no regrets about releasing Tammy Abraham and Ruben Loftus-Cheek on loan for the season, insisting they are on the best path for their development and hailing them as 'the future of Chelsea'.

Abraham, 20, who is on loan at Swansea, and Loftus-Cheek, 21, at Crystal Palace for the season, both made their senior England debuts against Germany last week.

'We are talking about two young players, really good players,' said Chelsea boss Conte. 'For sure Ruben and Tammy will be the future for Chelsea.

Antonio Conte has no regrets about sending Tammy Abraham and Ruben Loftus-Cheek on loan

Abraham, 20, who is on loan at Swansea City, made his senior England debut last week

Loftus-Cheek, 21, at Crystal Palace for the season, also impressed in the internationals

'Now it is right for them to play regularly. I read Ruben's interview and he said his path is perfect and to play regularly this season for him is very important for his development.

'Then to come back and play for Chelsea, with great maturity. It is the same path for Andreas Christensen. He played for two years on loan and now he is playing regularly for Chelsea. He is a young player but he is an important Chelsea player.'

Christensen is thriving at Stamford Bridge after two years in Germany with Borussia Monchengladbach.

The 21-year-old Dane has impressed since his return and was preferred to David Luiz in central defence for the Premier League win against Manchester United, before the international break.

Conte cited Andreas Christensen as an example of how Chelsea's loan system works well

Conte also insisted Danny Drinkwater rejected an England call because of injury

Conte also insisted Danny Drinkwater rejected an England call because of injury and said: 'He was very honest. During the game against Manchester United he took a knock on his calf and after the game, in a training session to recover, he stopped for treatment.

'Only this week has he started to work with us. It means the player was clever and intelligent.'

When asked about Drinkwater's absence, England manager Gareth Southgate explained: 'He felt he wasn't ready yet to play this level. I can understand it given the amount of minutes he's had and he didn't play at the end of the season with Leicester either.'