Conte - Realising The Roman Dream

At half-time at the Emirates, Arsenal were 3 – 0 to the good. Chelsea, utterly destroyed, desperately needed to instil some defensive fortitude into their performance. Keenly aware of the corrosive effect that a mauling would inflict on morale, Antonio Conte turned to a system he knew well and favoured: 3 – 4 – 3. The Blues didn’t concede any more on that afternoon and nor, in the Premier League at least, done so since. It’s been 500 minutes since they conceded a goal; Hull, Leicester, Manchester United, Southampton and Everton have tried since and failed miserably. Not only that, Chelsea have rediscovered their goal touch. Five games, sixteen goals without reply; it’s some record and they are the form team in the top flight. For such a seemingly small tweak, Conte has resolved his defence’s weaknesses and freed the mercurial array of attacking talents at his disposal. Arguably, Eden Hazard is playing the best football of his career, mesmerising and tormenting opponents in a way unimaginable last season. The Belgian is free of the burden of being the sole creative outlet in the XI; Chelsea quickly learned that attacking at pace brings the midfield into play, with N’Golo Kante scoring in the recent rout of Manchester United. It lessens the pressure on Hazard, releasing him from the shackles of his mind and the opposition. On the other side of the pitch, Victor Moses is a man reborn. Loan spells at Liverpool, Stoke and West Ham saw him hint at the talent first seen at Crystal Palace and Wigan but it was never delivered consistently. Conte harnessed that ability and with 2 goals in 8 games, is on course for his best goal return in league football. Most importantly, Conte has got the petulant and snarling Diego Costa back scoring goals on a regular basis. With nine already this season, Costa is back in the form which delivered the Premier League title two seasons ago. Can they do it again? The biggest question mark is squad depth. Chelsea possess a starting XI to rival any but scratch the surface and the issue becomes apparent. The bench against Everton was one of the strongest in recent matches and with Fabregas, Willian and Zouma set to return to the matchday squad, Conte certainly has options but a run of bad luck could scupper their chances. Chelsea’s biggest asset is Conte. Self-assured with the squad, he has a vitality, a vibrancy which is infectious on the training pitch and a record which commands respect. This is not a successful player parachuted into a plum role; Conte earned his spurs in Serie B before landing the top job at Juventus. Andrea Pirlo spoke admiringly of Conte’s first team talk at Juventus Center where he derided the squad for consecutive seventh place finishes. You have to wonder what he told Chelsea’s flops; last season was the worst title defence in Premier League history and even tenth place was a vast improvement on what happened for a lot of the campaign, it was still woeful. More than anything, he communicates with a player in a language they both understand: a former player whose career ended a decade ago. Conte is not so long in the tooth, not so far beyond playing his last game that he can’t remember the dressing room mentality from the player’s perspective. It’s a key ingredient which gives him credibility. That and being a player who has won virtually every honour at club level and was a member of the Italian squads which finished runners up at Euro 2000 and the USA 1994 World Cup. He has been there, seen it and got the t-shirt. And his medal haul stands comparison with any in his dressing room. He commands respect as a manager not just for the triumphs at Juventus but for the perception of success in charge of the Azzurri. The Italians didn’t win anything in his two years in charge except a lot of friends with the style of Conte’s football. Stereotypically defensive, Italy shed that skin at Euro 2016. Perhaps it cost them victory over Germany but that has more to do with the comical penalty taking of Simone Zaza and others, than anything else. Conte, Pirlo contended, picked the right words for the right moments. He had, the maestro said, the ability to pick through issues and deliver salient points to players. Pirlo famously said “When Conte speaks, his words assault you. They crash through the doors of your mind.” The motivational aspect of Conte’s job at Chelsea can’t be underestimated. The players were low; Mourinho lost his ability to inspire with his demise confirmed amid acrimony and unfair dismissal litigation. Whilst Guus Hiddink steadied the ship, the club needed positivity; demanded it. Begged for it. Conte delivers that and more. Since taking over at Chelsea, Roman Abramovich craved winning but with style. Managers and coaches have delivered that, culminating in the Champions League for the first time in the club’s history but none were delivered with swagger or style. The summer proved Conte’s credentials in that respect. The Italians could have got further at Euro 2016 had they played in the same manner of their predecessors but Conte did not – could not – settle for that. His personality exudes life. Watch the man on the touchline and you have a bundle of nervous energy, kicking every ball himself. Antonio Conte has yet to succeed at Chelsea but the platform he is building may deliver the silverware he and the club crave.