Antonio Conte is a very particular manager, and he wants his Chelsea players to be in synch with his playing philosophy. His three-at-the-back formation last season made a star out of Marcos Alonso who played so far up the pitch he could often have mistaken for an out-and-out winger instead of a defender.

With Chelsea leading the league in clean sheets and Alonso leading all defenders in goals scored, he was the 7th highest scorer overall on a points-per-game basis – top defender by some distance. For Draft Fantasy managers who took a gamble on Alonso on the waiver wire, there was no better pickup all of last season.

Could this year’s Alonso be Davide Zappacosta? The similarities abound. Both are wingbacks, both signed from Italian teams just before transfer window closed, and both are/were unsung to start their Chelsea careers. They even have similar physical attributes – both are tall, lanky, and lean.

If Conte can conjure up even some of the same magic with Zappacosta as he did with Alonso, the latest signing should be your top priority, ahead of Tottenham’s Serge Aurier or any other late Premier League additions, like Swansea’s Renato Sanches or West Brom’s Grzegorz Krychowiak.

So what do we know about the young Italian? Well, the 25-year old from Sora, Italy came through Atalanta and Torino, and he’s parlayed himself from a €60,000 (£55,000) transfer value in 2011 to the £25.8 million that Chelsea just shelled out.

He scored twice in the past two seasons with Torino, but nevertheless caught Conte’s eye when the Chelsea manager was still leading the Azzuri national team in 2016. Zappacosta’s deft crossing might have been the key trait that won his boss over.

He had five assists in Serie A last season, and was one of, if not, the top crossing defenders in his league. “Toppa-crosser”… is that what Zappacosta means in Italian?

Zappacosta seems to be in direct competition with Victor Moses for the right-sided attacking berth in the Chelsea XI. Alvaro Morata has easily won the right to lead the line, and already has two headed goals, thus suggesting that good service will be integral to Chelsea’s success this year.

Moses, for all his pace and strength, is not at an advantage in this area. Ironically, Victor might actually be the loser here, so his Fantasy owners should hold tight for now but be ready for a transition. Best case for Zappacosta is in the neighbourhood of Alonso, but he must first banish the demons left by Filipe Luis, of talented players who were not able to break through.

Champions League

Meanwhile, Draft Fantasy managers must decide whether to make Zappacosta or the Frenchman, and Tottenham summer signing, Serge Aurier their top priority claim this week. Aurier, too, was one of the top crossers and defensive creators in his league (Ligue 1) over the last few years.

Spurs and Chelsea, despite early season struggles, should both be top defensive units. So Aurier is just as worthy of top waiver priority, and will probably be much higher owned next week as he is more well-known. But don’t sleep on Zappacosta if you’re already maxed on Spurs players, or think he’s going to be available instead of Aurier.

Zappacosta is likely to be passed over in many leagues and has tremendous potential. Consider yourself warned.