Spooked by woes in Europe, Conte seeks redemption

FRUSTRATED by his past failures in the elite Champions League, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has set his sights on a mission of redemption as he returns to the competition after a four-year absence.

Conte still bears the scars from a snowy night in Istanbul in 2013, when Juventus suffered a shock loss against Galatasaray that sent the Italian giants crashing out of Europe’s elite club competition.

That embarrassing exit remains Conte’s last experience of the Uefa Champions League, but he will end that wait tonight when Chelsea host Azerbaijan minnows Qarabag in their Group C opener.

Having led Chelsea to the English Premier League title last season, the 48-year-old would dearly love to bring the London club their second Champions League crown.

But bitter experience will remind Conte to take nothing for granted.

In his first Champions League campaign in 2012-13, Juventus won the group with an unbeaten run of three wins and three draws, but in the quarterfinals found themselves in deep water against Bayern Munich.

Although Conte’s well-drilled side were peerless in Serie A, Bayern taught them a lesson in Europe.

The German club won 2-0 at home and eased into the semifinals with a 2-0 win in Turin.

The following season, Conte led Juventus to the Serie A for a third successive season, as the Turin giants amassed a record total of 102 points.

But it was a far different story in the Champions League. It turned into a four-month horror story.

Draws against Copenhagen and Galatasaray in the first two matches put Juve in trouble ahead of back-to-back meetings with Real Madrid.

A 2-1 defeat in Spain and a 2-2 draw in Turin left Conte on the brink of a humiliating early exit.

An Arturo Vidal hat-trick inspired a 3-1 triumph over Copenhagen that set up a do-or-die trip to Galatasaray, where a point would have been enough for Juve to advance.

However, fate conspired against Conte as the tie was halted in Istanbul, with the score 0-0, as heavy snowfall made playing conditions impossible.

Forced to play the rest of the match 24 hours later, Juventus were frozen out in the finale.

Conte was plunged into despair when Wesley Sneijer slotted in the Galatasaray winner.

However, with Chelsea in good form and star Eden Hazard back from injury, Conte is hoping that Europe is kinder to him this time.