Pep’s praise for ‘tactical master’ Conte

ANTONIO CONTE’S outstanding contribution to English football will only be appreciated when he’s left Chelsea, said Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola yesterday. Guardiola praised the Chelsea manager as a ‘tactical master’ ahead of their Premier League meeting at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow. Conte’s future is uncertain with last season’s champions now in a fight for the top four and the Italian national team have fanned the flames by saying they want him back. Luis Enrique, a close friend of Guardiola’s from Barcelona, has been linked with the Chelsea job but City’s boss was full of compliments for Conte ahead of their clash. ‘What Antonio has done here in the Premier League, maybe the people don’t realise,’ said Guardiola. ‘He introduced another way to attack with five at the back, another system, a lot of teams, even Arsenal, had to do a lot of imitating to do that. Tactically he is a master, he did it amazingly with Italy and when he went to Turin (with Juventus). I think Conte is going to leave, going to give something to English football. I’m sure of that.’