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Chelsea opinion: Keeping Antonio Conte wouldn’t be a disaster

By Kian Long

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 19: Antonio Conte, Manager of Chelsea celebrates with the Emirates FA Cup Trophy following his sides victory in The Emirates FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 19, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 19: Antonio Conte, Manager of Chelsea celebrates with the Emirates FA Cup Trophy following his sides victory in The Emirates FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 19, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /
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Antonio Conte gets his fair share of critics, but he’s one of the best managers right now.

Wait, don’t leave yet! It may have seemed like a major major hyperbole, but when you consider the options available to Chelsea, who is better than Antonio Conte?

Maurizio Sarri is perhaps on par with Conte, but he is yet to prove himself to the world. Unlike Conte, who has experience managing at the top level with Italy, Juventus and Chelsea – all three of which has served him well.

According to The Mirror, Antonio Conte’s brother has sent hints that Conte could remain at Chelsea, here’s why it’s not such a bad thing…

The unexpected rise of Chelsea

When Jose Mourinho left the Blues, many found it hard to see a way back for Chelsea. However, in true fashion, they did just that in Antonio Conte.

Conte had quite the slow start to life in London. It was the 3-0 embarrassment at the hands of Arsenal which forced the Italian to change how things were run.

Towards the end of that match, Chelsea adopted a three-at-the-back formation, one which has served Conte well. In doing so, Arsenal were no longer able to create openings and beat Thibaut Courtois.

This set the tone for the rest of the season, with a number of clubs mimicking his system in a desperate attempt to stop Conte. But it wasn’t to be, and the Blues lifted the Premier League trophy once again.

A proven winner

Throughout his career, Antonio Conte has never been known to win knockout competitions, mainly league titles.

However, this was out of the equation last season when Manchester City dominated the Premier League, and Chelsea finished in fifth place behind Liverpool. Despite all their shortcomings that season, the Blues managed to keep a steady run in the FA Cup.

They were helped massively by drawing Southampton in the semifinal, but they still needed to face Manchester United in the resulting final.

It was a tale of Antonio Conte vs Jose Mourinho, current Chelsea vs former Chelsea, and we all know who come out on top.

Despite all his critics, and his London career assumed to be over at that point, the Italian pulled through and ensured the Blues ended their season on a high.

It’s this kind of never-say-die mentality which separates the great managers from the standard managers. Because at the end of the day, people will always look back on winning trophies, not the fancy football or relationship with players which got you there.

Next: A tale of the Englishman who took Sweden to a World Cup final

Do you think Chelsea should consider keeping Antonio Conte?

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