Antonio Conte does it better and is making West London very happy by doing so. The Italian is working wonders in a season that truly couldn’t be written better even if Quentin Tarantino tried.
Most say Conte has given Chelsea a much-needed facelift from last year’s abomination of a season. Truth is, Conte has done what his people are most famous for.
Conte has carved and moulded a new sculpture out of Jose Mourinho’s rubble. This tactical masterclass hasn’t revised the Blues, he’s completely and utterly pushed the organisation into a new generation. Gone is the Jose era, incoming is the Conte aeon. Here’s why.
PASSION
Something we saw very little from in Mourinho’s second stint. Conte doesn’t have a bone in his body that doesn’t encapsulate every sense of the word. When we did see it from the Portuguese manager, it was directed towards match officials and ended up costing the team figuratively, and literally.
This lead to Chelsea acquiring a bad reputation in the media and within the journalists. On the contrary, Conte lets his work do the talking.
The countless hours of preparation from the driver of the Chelsea bus result in his passion being spent on celebrating with the fans. Not only is this astounding for the public image of the team, but also is much easier for the players to get behind and support their coach.
NOT AFRAID
Conte is bold. Only a few months into the job and we can see the versatility this magician can pull out of his sleeve.
The ability to almost simultaneously switch his teams formation completely within the 15 minutes of a half-time interval is just a luscious taste of what his true coaching capabilities are.
His courageousness and audaciousness is something west London hasn’t been accustomed to for quite some time. It took one and a half losses for Conte to daringly re-write the blueprint for his whole team.
Mourinho was sacked before he could muster the courage to stop his team from bleeding out. Yes, changing your whole system could be hit or miss, Conte goes a step further within his players.
Victor Moses was loaned out all three seasons that Mourinho reigned in his second Chelsea spell. The Nigerian winger is now a key part of Chelsea’s current system.
Mourinho was scared to give players a chance because he couldn’t properly judge how good they were. Running the risk of something blowing up in his face was too much of a chance for the now Manchester United manager to run.
Conte’s fearlessness is one that all managers should be aiming to obtain. And boy, is it paying off. Another reason why Chelsea and all of their supporters should prepare to be launched into a new, unwritten chapter of the club’s life. I just think that Conte could make it the greatest they have ever seen.
UNITY
It is something Conte has brought everywhere he goes. From his infamous team Italy squad photo to bringing his entire managerial staff into his Manager of the Month award photo, Conte has a way of bringing everybody together and damn is he good at it.
In past years we’ve had managers hit out at players in the press when results aren’t going to plan. These are untraveled waters for Conte. When a match doesn’t go our way the manager selflessly takes the heat, not using any player, match official or another variable to scapegoat the blame on.
Admittedly and thankfully we haven’t had too many instances of this, but the case still stands true. Not only does this give an identity of invulnerability, but this keeps every person in the club calm and content.
Stability.
Conte’s ability to keep his cool is one that is underappreciated and is the perfect formula for success. Another reason why the Armani of manager will become the face of the west London revolution. A tag he was given after Bleacher Report’s Garry Hayes asked him that very question.
RUTHLESSNESS
Conte is a very fair man. With his fairness, though, comes an exorbitant amount of fierceness. Don’t let his blue-eyed cheery smile fool you, Conte is feared.
Backed by his ability to make heroically bold moves, the Italian will put you through hell and back should you not follow his direct order. Screaming in every inch of his technical area for 90 minutes has become a regular feature at Stamford Bridge this season.
Many are unaware of the gruelling if not inhumane pre-season Conte put his squad through. To put it into perspective, the phrase “running them into the ground” is only the warm-up in comparison to what Conte’s soldiers endured. One of the basis’ of Conte’s success is that he talks a big game, and lives up to it also.
People are starting to notice that Conte and his management team aren’t just the custodial staff that are cleaning up the mess left from Mourinho’s last party.
Chelsea supporters are slowly coming to terms with the fact that Conte is the landlord who has torn down and rebuilt and given a new face to the Chelsea estate.
