You have to suffer to be stronger... then you can win

ANTONIO CONTE has made his players suffer this season. He has forced them to sweat it out in training and made them work harder than ever before – because he believes the rewards only come with pain.

Chelsea are just three points from their fifth Premier League title in 12 years. A win tonight at West Brom will hand Conte the supreme prize in English football in his first year of working here. If it does not come tonight in the Midlands, it will surely arrive on Monday when they face Watford at Stamford Bridge.

The finishing tape is in sight for Conte and his players and last night the Italian urged his men to go out and write another chapter in the history of the club.

It could, of course, not even be the final chapter this season, with Chelsea facing Arsenal in the FA Cup final on May 27. The coveted Double beckons.

But it will not have come without suffering. Conte had his players running hard in double sessions in pre-season, harder and further than skipper John Terry said he had ever known under any previous REPORTS Blues manager. The Conte mantra is hard work – and it has not stopped.

“It is impossible to win without suffering,” he said. “When you work very hard, it’s normal to suffer. I’ve never seen a player who, when working hard, doesn’t suffer. When you suffer, you become stronger and you are ready to face every situation, any problem during a game.”

Juventus players hurled Conte in the bath when they won their first Serie A title under him in 2012 – perhaps as revenge for their suffering under him.

“Am I worried about that happening again? No. I hope they do it!” he said.

“After one season, when you work a lot and you suffer a lot, enjoying but also suffering, if you win and reach your target then the moment of celebration must be fantastic. But now it is not right to think about this KICK-OFF: