Chelsea claims that Antonio Conte cost them millions of dollars with Diego Costa

Chelsea will try to avoid paying Antonio Conte his severance pay of £ 9m, believing that his treatment of Diego Costa was not "in the club's best interest".

The Italian boss Conte was relieved of his duties last summer after two years at the head of the club and he remained a year to his contract.

It is understood that Mr Conte had a clause in his contract guaranteeing a payment estimated at £ 9m for the last year.

But Chelsea believes that the manager's conduct during his tenure at the club was questionable and they feel that he was not entitled to the entire package.

A private arbitration tribunal consisting of three people and convened by the Premier League is held Thursday. Both parties are supposed to defend themselves.

And, according to the Times, Chelsea's argument will be based on Conté's treatment of Costa.

The two men had a tense relationship during their stay together in West London, which eventually led the attacker to return to Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2017.

Before Costa's departure, Conte sent Costa a text message saying "you're not in my plan".

This message is part of Chelsea's argument, after the striker went on strike and returned to Brazil.

Costa was deemed surplus by the former Italian director and he was finally sold to Atletico Madrid for 57 million pounds sterling.

They believe that this saga has ultimately compromised their chances of selling it for its true market value.

Another part of their argument is that Conté's conduct led the club to sign Real Madrid's Alvaro Morata for 60 million pounds sterling.

The striker turned out to be a huge flop at Stamford Bridge and returned to Spain in January to join Atletico Madrid on loan until the end of the 2019-2020 season.