Conte hails ‘warrior’ Costa
ANTONIO CONTE believes he has convinced Diego Costa to ignore niggling opponents and focus on scoring goals.
Curiously, wind-up merchant Costa remains without a red card in Premier League football, despite rolling out every trick in the book to unsettle the opposition.
The 28-year-old has parked some of that gamesmanship however, blasting 11 league goals so far this term as Chelsea have won eight League matches on the spin.
Chelsea host West Brom at Stamford Bridge today, with manager Conte desperate for Costa to remain on the straight and narrow.
“I think Diego is a real warrior. He’s good for the team, because it’s important to have many warriors during the game,” said Conte.
Costa has appeared intent on scoring goals above all else under Conte this term, whereas at times he cut a distracted, frustrated figure as Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea tenure crumbled last season.
Conte believes the striker’s form comes down to maintaining the right levels of focus on the rudiments of his game, that in turn lead to goals.
Chelsea will bid for a ninth-straight League win against West Brom today, but Conte insists his side are not title favourites and believes no side will crack the 100-points barrier in the Premier League.
Chelsea hold the points-tally record with 95, while Conte guided Juventus to a European record of 102 in 2014.
Asked if he could repeat that feat in England, Conte replied: “No, it’s impossible.
“Every game is very tough. To have won eight in a row is fantastic, fantastic, because this league, in every game, you have to fight a lot.
“You can win 2-0, but it’s very difficult to manage the result in England.
“This is the great difficulty. In other countries, also in Italy, if you are 2-0 up after 50 minutes, it’s very difficult for the result to change. You are able to manage the result tactically.
“I think this number 95 is a fantastic number. You can see in the past the title has been won with 85, 87 points and it’s very difficult to get above 90 points.
“But, for us, it’s important to see and play, game by game. Don’t look too far ahead. If we are able to take three points, it’s important.”