Antonio Conte and Chelsea never even came up in preseason predictions for who would emerge as the Premier League’s elite. At best, Antonio Conte was the third horse in the title race. Conte and Chelsea put those assessments to rest yesterday at Manchester City.
Somewhere in September, Manchester City were running away with the title. Pep Guardiola was the manager to beat this season. Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola dominated all the headlines, as the media proclaimed Manchester the site of the title battle.
Fast forward to now. The red half of Manchester is effectively out of the title race. Yesterday, Chelsea dismantled Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. Chelsea are well atop the Premier League table, and Antonio Conte was the undisputed winner of the grand tactical battle with Pep Guardiola.
Chelsea’s win at the Etihad makes it 8 in a row for the West London club. They have scored 22 goals and conceded only two in that span. The shift to the 3-4-3 has been a masterclass from the Italian.
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Everybody knows what Conte did with Juventus and the formations he deployed. Still, he was somehow not placed in the same bracket as Mourinho and Guardiola. As all the attention accumulated on the Manchester coaches, Conte went about building something new in English football. Premier League clubs are still trying to decipher the formula and breach the Chelsea juggernaut.
The Premier League has the best of the managers in world football. Conte is setting himself to not only be the best in the league, but also in the world. He maintains his composure in front of the press while he indulges his passion for football on the touchline.
His emotions drive his team forward, instilling resilience and bridging the gap between the club and the fans. His endless high-fives and explosive celebrations enthrall the fans as much as what happens on the pitch. He rewards them for their devotion, and the fans repay the favor.
The Manchester City game showed how much Chelsea reflects Conte’s mentality. Chelsea conceded in the harshest manner and at the worst possible time. The old Chelsea would have not recovered from that.
The Blues went down in each of their last two the matches. Both times they pulled through successfully to get maximum points. Chelsea went through tough times earlier in the season with defeats against Liverpool and Arsenal. They will no doubt face difficult phases as the season continues. But the victories over Tottenham and Manchester City show how well they can handle adversity, and why those early defeats will not predict future performance.
Chelsea’s winning streak will most likely end at some point. Chelsea fans can take solace in how the team has reclaimed their grit and winning mentality. They are mentally strong and more motivated to win. This is all the doing of Antonio Conte.
Chelsea are tactically the most well-balanced team in the league at the moment. Manchester City, with all their riches and brilliance in attack, lack defensive discipline, as Chelsea exploited yesterday. Chelsea have all but secured their primary target of Champions League football for next season. Now they are clear favourites for winning the league, alongside (maybe a bit ahead of) Manchester City.
The Conte revolution was well underway at Chelsea before the thriller at the Etihad. Now the Italian has established himself properly. With the win against Manchester City, Chelsea made a strong statement to the rest of the league. For Antonio Conte, it was an affirmation that he is indeed one of the best managers in the game.