• SOCCER CHANCE FOR CONTE TO SILENCE MOURINHO
IT’S been there, all season, not at the forefront but definitely bubbling away in the background. José Mourinho hasn’t really had any direct swipes at Antonio Conte but he has offered almost a constant stream of passive-aggressive comments, covering everything from how some teams have benefited from a lack of European football to how they have also supposedly been praised for the type of counter-attacking football he has been criticised for.
Beyond doing things like matter-of-factly clarifying that he has “never, ever” played counter-attacking football, Conte hasn’t really offered many responses. He’s mostly maintained a dignified politeness.
That is, of course, because Chelsea have been there themselves, for the vast majority of the season, streaking away at the top of the table. That says more than anything ahead of their trip to Manchester United today.
There are still some close to the Chelsea squad who feel that Mourinho’s comments have irritated Conte more than the Stamford Bridge boss has let on, especially when you consider some of the minor slights that triggered him into major responses back with Juventus, and that he is merely waiting for the moment of maximum superiority – like winning the title – to properly respond.
Others would deny this, and the Italian almost dismissed the very merit of such comments when asked whether he has not been tempted to have a go. “Look, many coaches try to manipulate the ideas and try to put your thoughts in the way they want to,” Conte said on Friday. “But it’s not important for me. It’s important to continue to work and have our idea of football.”
If you wanted to disappear down the rabbit hole of mind games, you could say that itis an intelligently subtle barb, as one possible inference is that managers like Mourinho have to say such things to fundamentally justify the fact they are not winning; to get their “spin” out there. There might also be a grain of truth in that.
It might also seem so superficial to dwell on the personality of the managers and the pantomime of off-pitch comments ahead of such matches, but the reality is that all this feels like it is about much more than mind games, given how much of it reflects the reality of what is happening on the pitch. It’s certainly difficult not to think Mourinho has been especially irritated by Chelsea’s resurgence because of what it says about his own management.
While United’s progress has been the subject of much debate, that of the league leaders has been inarguable. Conte’s “idea of football” has been a resounding success, vindicated by so many victories, with only five now needed to definitively claim the title in his debut season. That, of course, used to be Mourinho: the fresh new manager, charming so many people and winning so many games.
That is also why today’s match might mean more to the Portuguese than it does to Conte, even allowing for the necessities of the races for the title and top four. In a season that has seen such debate about Mourinho’s own “idea of football”, how significant and symbolic would it be for him to lose all three games to his old team and their new manager? It would also be the finest response of all from Conte, leaving him barely needing to say a thing. Chelsea 1-0 Man United (FA Cup, March 2017) Chelsea 4-0 Man United (Premier League, October 2016) Chelsea 1-1 Man United (Premier League, February 2016) Man United 0-0 Chelsea (Premier League, December 2015) Chelsea 1-0 Man United (Premier League, April 2015) Man United 1-1 Chelsea (Premier League, October 2014) Chelsea 3-1 Man United (Premier League, January 2014) Man United 0-0 Chelsea (Premier League, August 2013) Man United 0-1 Chelsea (Premier League, May 2013) Chelsea 1-0 Man United (FA Cup, April 2013)
Mourinho then needs a statement on the pitch, but it probably reveals a lot about United’s issues this season that it’s hard to know how they’re going to go about it. It reveals a lot about Chelsea’s success this season, meanwhile, that we know exactly how they’re going to go about it. There is such an uncomplicated and unyielding clarity to Conte’s game, as even Mourinho had to admit on the eve of the game.
“It’s not for no reason that they are top of the league,” the United boss said. “It’s not just because they’re fresh but they have individual quality and they have collective quality. They have a certain style of play, they stick to it, they do it very well.”
That comment also touched on the fact we pretty much know who Chelsea will play, too, even if there may be some decision over whether it should be the finesse of Cesc Fabregas in the middle or the force of Nemanja Matic. That choice will be made entirely on the basis of tactics, though, because Conte has no injury worries. The lack of European football has undeniably helped