The former Juventus manager has been heavily linked with the Chelsea job, and has recently stated that he will not continue as the Italy national team coach after Euro 2016.
The name on everyone’s lips at Stamford Bridge of late has been Antonio Conte. The Italian manager is widely being reported as the long term successor to current interim manager Guus Hiddink at Chelsea FC. The speculation has been further encouraged by the recent revelation that he will not be continuing in his role as the manger of the Italy national team.
Reputed Serie A journalist James Horncastle tweeted a screenshot of one of Conte’s Facebook posts, where the latter declares that he will be leaving the Italian national team after the Euros.
Conte statement on leaving Italy after the Euros. Utmost concentration on the job at hand. Total commitment. #CFC pic.twitter.com/3XqEdGErLe
— James Horncastle (@JamesHorncastle) March 15, 2016
In the post, which is in Italian, Conte says that he wants to go back to the daily coaching routine of club management after fulfilling his commitments with the Italian national team.
The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) president Carlo Tavecchio has also confirmed that Conte will not continue as the manager of the Azzurri beyond the Euros.
“Antonio Conte told me that the end of the European Championship will end his experience (as Italy manager). He feels the lure of the field, the training everyday and this is understandable,” said Tavecchio, according to Italian publication ANSA.
Some Italian flavour at Stamford Bridge
Antonio Conte has long been linked with a move to Premier League giants Chelsea, and even legendary Italian footballer Andrea Pirlo stated that ‘the beast with two wives‘ would be a welcome addition to the Blues. Roman Abramovich had reportedly singled out the Italian manager for the job in early February, and was confident enough of acquiring his services to privately announce to his players that the Italian would be taking over in the summer.
Chelsea are currently in a very bad shape. The Blues were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League by PSG in the round of 16 stage, and more recently, were eliminated by Everton in the FA Cup quarter-finals. In the Premier League, they are at a lowly 10th position, with little chance of securing European football for next season. As such, Conte definitely has his work cut out for him should he arrive at Stamford Bridge next summer.
