Antonio Conte endured another pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow’s derby against Arsenal. He smartly put in context Pep Guardiola’s earlier comments that the Premier League title is Chelsea’s to lose.
Antonio Conte knows that there are certain things a manager has to say the media and his players at particular points in the season. Whether they are cliches to feed the press or time-honored motivational techniques in the locker room, these are the moments where everyone plays their part in the ancient dance.
Pep Guardiola did his part after Manchester City trounced West Ham midweek. Knowing that Chelsea’s 10-point lead far outweighs City’s four-goal win, Guardiola said that the title is Chelsea’s to lose.
The press took the next step, asking Conte to weigh in on Guardiola’s statements. Conte took a slight detour from the usual routine, saying that Guardiola is simply doing what every manager does in that situation.
"It’s a normal mental strategy every single coach tries to use for his players and to put a bit of pressure on the others… I repeat: if someone thinks the league is finished, I’m not so sure. I want to have this right tension. – Chelsea FC"
Conte went on to explain the sharp reversal of fortunes between Chelsea and Manchester City from the first Arsenal fixture to today. City had seven more points than Chelsea after the Blues’ 3-0 loss at the Emirates. Eighteen games later, Chelsea have 10 points on City with 15 games remaining.
Both Guardiola and Conte are correct in how they read the situation, even if they are reading from a script. Conte is right that anything can happen. Just because a scenario is improbable – highly so – does not make it impossible.
Guardiola is placing his hopes on that improbability. Both men know that two things need to happen for another flip-flop at the top. Chelsea would need an epic, complete and utter collapse. And – not or, and – Manchester City would need to approach Chelsea’s record-setting win streak.
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Both are necessary conditions for Manchester City (or another top-four club) to overtake Chelsea. Chelsea have complete control over their destiny. Guardiola, Mauricio Pochettino and Jurgen Klopp, on the other hand, are as reliant on Chelsea’s fortunes as they are on their own.
The title may not be Chelsea’s to lose, but at this point it is nobody else’s to win.