Italian manager Antonio Conte is not one to shy away from displaying his emotions on the sidelines, as has been evident from Chelsea’s first two games of the new Premier League season.
The Blues had a torrid 2015-16 season, sacking their most successful manager in Jose Mourinho and finishing in 10th position under interim manager Guus Hiddink. After much speculation about the identity of Mourinho’s permanent replacement, Antonio Conte was announced as Chelsea’s manager.
Chelsea fans were given a preview of his on-field exuberance at the European Championships in France in the summer, and the former Juventus coach has carried on in the same vein since joining the Blues. After leading the Blues to yet another dramatic 2-1 win — this time over Watford — on Saturday, Conte explained why he was so animated on the touchline.
“Usually when my team play, I play with them,” said the Italian, according to The Guardian. “I try in every moment to suggest the right pass or the right position and it is important because sometimes when the ball is on one side it is, for example, important to push out.
“Or when, at the end of the game, we played 4-2-4 to stay wide with two wingers. It’s not easy. But it is important to support the players and sometimes I know that they hear these things and sometimes they choose not to.”
Antonio Conte’s managerial career started in the Italian second division with Bari. After leading them to the Serie B title, he led Juventus to three Serie A titles in consecutive seasons. The 46-year-old then took up the Italy national team job in 2014 and helped an underrated Azzurri side reach the quarter-final of Euro 2016, with Belgium and Spain beaten in the process.
One of his legendary wards in Andrea Pirlo has previously described Conte as a beast and the former Bianconeri manager is living up to the tag with his passionate outbursts on the sidelines as Chelsea manager. It remains to be seen if he can lead the Blues to a title in his first season in charge. It will also be interesting to his battles against the other high profile managers in the league like Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Jose Mourinho.
