Conte: This team can be world force
Antonio Conte, the Chelsea head coach, believes the success of England Under-17s and the other national youth teams reflects the growing strength of English football and will soon be felt at the senior World Cup.
Conte took satisfaction from the fact Chelsea provided five of Steve
Cooper’s Under-17 World Cup-winning squad, whose triumph in India matched the achievement of the under-20s in South Korea earlier this year, while the under-19s were crowned European champions and the under-21s reached the last four of their European Championship.
Drawing on his experience as a former Italy coach, Conte believes the trend marks England out as an emerging force in the game.
“I think football in England is growing in an incredible way because it is not the only result for young players, because under-19s, under-20s have won and the under21s played a really good European cup,” he said. “It means in England football is growing and improving a lot. I am sure that, in the future, the England national team, the first
team, will be very difficult to beat. I want to tell you this because I was a coach with the Italy national team and I think, when you have this movement behind you, you can have a great possibility to have a strong team for the next World Cup and for the competitions for the national team.”
Chelsea were represented by Marc Guehi, Jonathan Panzo, Conor Gallagher, George Mceachran and Callum Hudson-odoi in India. Conte believes that reflects well on the club’s academy and, while Chelsea have been regularly criticised for failing to offer their young players sufficient first-team opportunities, the Italian insists his own experience as a teenager means he will not block the progress of players like Ethan Ampadu, who are
ready to step up. “I am very happy for our five players, and sometimes Odoi came to train with us,” he said.
“I am very happy for our academy, because it means our academy is working very well. Against Everton, Ethan Ampadu played for the first time and he is only 17. Don’t forget that my first appearance in my career in Serie A, I was only 16. I am the best person to give this type of possibility if I see they deserve it.
“I repeat, in my experience at Juventus, Paul Pogba was only 18, then after one month he played from the start. I want to give these possibilities – but you have to deserve these possibilities. Ampadu, for example, is not an England player, he is only 17, but he deserves to stay with us and to develop, to be the future for Chelsea.”