CONTE CRISIS
Ant’s job on line after Roman row
ANTONIO CONTE is walking a tightrope at Chelsea after angering club owner Roman Abramovich.
The Stamford Bridge supremo is raging after Conte claimed the club’s signings this season were nothing to do with him.
Conte is widely expected to leave at the end of the season but his rant could now speed up his Blues exit.
Sources close to the billionaire claim Abramovich was upset at Conte’s public outburst following their Carabao Cup semi-final defeat by Arsenal – and the club are adamant Conte has been consulted over player deals.
Sunday’s FA Cup fourthround home tie against Newcastle now looks crucial for Conte. Paris St-Germain are well
aware of the unrest and could offer Conte an escape route.
The Italian national side are also keen to have Conte back with the job still vacant.
The Blues have already pinpointed out-of-work former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique as a likely replacement, with ex-boss Carlo Ancelotti also a possible candidate.
Conte let rip after his team lost 2-1 at the Emirates to miss out on a Wembley final.
Axed
The defeat saw their poor run extend to just one win in seven games, with Abramovich having axed previous bosses after far less disappointing runs.
Conte was clearly out to make a point on Wednesday when he said: “I think the club decide our transfer market.
“My task is to try to improve the team. About the transfer market, from the summer, the club decides every single player.
“For sure, I don’t have a big impact on the transfer market.”
In the summer, the champions landed Alvaro Morata, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Danny Drinkwater, Antonio Rudiger and Davide Zappacosta for close to £200m.
This month they have only signed Ross Barkley from Everton – not a player Conte had asked for, it is understood.
Reports have emerged from Chelsea that Conte is constantly in a bad mood behind the scenes, even being grumpy with the Italian coaching contingent at the club.
The Blues are in the process of wrapping up a double move for Roma’s Edin Dzeko and Emerson Palmieri and it appears from Conte’s comments he was not behind that double-deal either.
One spin-off from Conte’s issues with Chelsea has been Brazil centre-back David Luiz’s decision not to try to force a move away.
Luiz had a major falling-out with Conte in October and has had just 32 minutes of Premier League action since.
But Luiz, 30, is prepared to stay as he is convinced the club will have a new manager by next season at the latest.