MAC: I’M NO BRIT BASHER
He sees his deadly striker outgunning Everton goal-machine Romelu Lukaku, the man tipped to replace him this summer.
Conte cannot wait to witness the big-time shoot-out at Everton today.
Lukaku is the Premier League’s top marksman with 24 this season, five more than Costa.
But Conte is confident his man will finish top scorer as the title race reaches the business end of the season. And he believes Chelsea have overcome their hiccup of losing at Manchester United and wounds have well and truly healed.
Now he thinks the title will be decided by the two best strikers in the Premier League.
If Chelsea, who rarely win a match these days without conceding a goal, can keep Lukaku quiet then the job is almost done.
Conte (right) said: “I hope it will be Diego who decides it because that means we win the game.
“We are talking about two great strikers. But you know that Diego, for me, is the best striker in the world. I hope he will be decisive in this game and from now on until the end of the season.
“He has the character you need at this stage of the season, for sure. It’s very important to have players with good personality, with good strong characters, because you must be ready to face a different situation.
“He’s a warrior – but I think in the team we have a lot of warriors. I work every day to bring them to be warriors.
“It’s great to have talent. But I like a lot when you are a warrior during the game and – above all – if players with talent show they work hard during the game.”
And Conte, 47, neatly sidestepped questions about former Chelsea player Lukaku returning in the summer and Costa signing a huge deal with a Chinese club.
He added: “You know that I don’t like to speak about the other players of the other teams, above all in this part of the season. A crucial part of the season.
“It’s a lack of respect for my TONY STENSON players and for those of the other club. He’s a good player because he showed in this season that he scored a lot of goals.
“He’s a good guy but, I repeat, for us Diego is a very important player and, in this part of the season, he will be decisive for us.”
Conte knew he had the players needed for the run-in following their defeat by United.
He added: “I was worried about the pressure after that. Was it getting to them?
“It wasn’t easy to face this type of pressure. Above all because, after the United defeat and you saw you only had a four-point lead, and then you had to play a semi-final against Tottenham, your opponents in the league. We then had to play two-and-a-half days later against Southampton, a team who had rested for 10 days.
“Yeah, I think that it was a good test for us, for our mental condition. I always thought this week would be very important for us.
“I considered this week crucial for us, to get to the FA Cup Final and also for the league. I thought we had to be good to keep ahead of Tottenham and at the same time you had to face Tottenham to reach the final, then Southampton, then Everton away. I think this was a good answer from my players.
“Today is a moment of truth. It’s another step, it’s another very important step. Then we’ll have another against Middlesbrough. When you arrive at the end of the season, every single game is a test, a psychological test.
“Every game is very important, every single game. An easy game on paper becomes a tough game.”
Conte revealed his toughest ask when taking over was listening to the dressing room music.
He said: “It was loud, rock stuff. My taste is purely Italian classical. We have learned a lot together.
“After this season I think I’ll have learned a lot about all my squad, about all my players, about English football, about this incredible atmosphere that you are lucky to play in. I learn a lot. Also a lot to compare my ideas of football with the other coaches.
“This is an incredible experience for me, but not only for me, for every coach, to work in this country.
“I always said it was very strange the first time to arrive and to listen to the music in high volume in the dressing room. It was not a shock but because I always thought that, before the game, you must be focused, no? And I thought the silence helped to find the focus.
“If I wanted music it would have been classical Italian. But it’s impossible to bring my favourite music into the changing room.” WEST BROM midfielder James McClean insists he is not anti-British.
The Republic of Ireland winger (below) has faced criticism for refusing to wear a kit bearing a Remembrance poppy – even receiving death threats for his stance, and deciding against representing Northern Ireland at international level despite growing up in Derry and appearing for them at age-group level.
However, speaking to the BBC’s Football Focus, McClean, 28, revealed he never had any intention of playing for Northern Ireland at senior level.
“Back in Derry I was just being me. Nobody cared,” he said. “All of a sudden things I say are in the papers. I’m still the same person I am.
“It’s in the papers that I’m pro-IRA and the way it goes, if you see something in the paper you believe it whether it’s true or not.
“I’ve been very lucky with my managers, they’ve believed my side of the GREG ADAMS story. I’ve had death threats and I’ve had a lot of people see me as anti-British.
“I want to go on record here and say I’ve never been anti-British. There are certain things that I don’t agree with, my beliefs, but I take people at face value.
“I’ve had a lot of death threats which started when I declared myself for the Republic. I played for Northern Ireland for the youth system but I never had aspirations to play for them.”
McClean’s refusal to wear the poppy for the first time in 2012 saw him booed by Sunderland fans – something he admits hastened his exit.
He said: “I was on the verge of signing for New York Red Bulls but I could not turn down the chance to play in the Premier League again.
“Tony Pulis outlined his plans. It was a no-brainer. Having a manager that believes in you – there’s no better feeling.”