Chelsea: Antonio Conte’s obsession with winning is holding back youth

Antonio Conte’s obsession with winning is causing him, either consciously or sub-consciously, to preclude Chelsea’s youth from getting playing time.

To suggest a manager likes winning may sound like an obvious statement. Antonio Conte is certainly no exception. If anything, he is more vocal than most about it.

But Antonio Conte is in a predicament. Chelsea opened the year winning one of four games and scoring only two goals before the Brighton match. His players are in a rut and struggling to score. Managers tend to lean on older, more proven players when in-game situations call for someone to grab a winner or help see out a game. But Conte has a deep bench of young players at his disposal, along with the reputation of being another Chelsea manager who cares little for youth development.

In the first match against Norwich, Conte played a rotated lineup and took a bench consisting of Eduardo, Alvaro Morata, Charly Musonda, Ethan Ampadu, Dujon Sterling and Callum Hudson-Odoi. The squad rewarded the manager with an uninspired, bored, tepid display to take it to a replay. Conte obviously thought the starting XI could handle the job, and regretted that he could not bring on a recognised game changer.

He changed this in the replay with a stronger bench. The worst thing for Chelsea (other than a loss) happened. N’Golo Kante and Andreas Christensen, both in need of a rest, were brought on to see out a 1-0 lead. It was predictable game management from Conte. You could argue it was fair enough, but extra time and penalties were always a possibility. The game ended up going the full 120 minutes, and Eden Hazard also came on when he could have used a day off.

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Chelsea has a fantastic academy and they are often chastised for not using their youth enough. It’s a problem that has plagued managers throughout the Roman Abramovich era. Travis Tyler has done the math. Compared to some of his predecessors, Conte is at the lower end of the spectrum when giving minutes to youth players.

For someone who complains about fixture congestion and how he has little say in the transfers, perhaps Conte should give the younger players more opportunity to start. Instead of giving them 30 seconds at the end of games – games which they have to be winning by three goals or more – Conte should give them the minutes they need to develop into the players he wants.

Having less trust in the younger players is understandable. But too often when Chelsea are in the lead Conte is happier to contain and keep the lead at one or two goals. With his reluctance to play the youth unless his team has a big lead, Conte corners himself in terms of their development.

Bringing on a player like Callum Hudson-Odoi would add energy to the side. He would also be highly unlikely to be the direct cause of a goal against. The veteran players also make mistakes. In injury time against Norwich, for example, David Luiz and Davide Zappacosta were to blame for the equaliser.

Chelsea hardly need a huge change. If the side are lacking invention and need to break an opponent down, look to Hudson-Odoi. We all know what we are going to get from Pedro. Or, if the Blues need to see a game out, Dujon Sterling will give pace and an outlet at wing-back. Ethan Ampadu has proven more than capable of doing a good job, as a starter as well as a substitute.

This happened last season and it happened pre-Conte. It’s the reason Chelsea has such a large loan army. It’s also the reason players like Nathaniel Chalobah, Nathan Ake, and even Kevin De Bruyne and Mohammed Salah have been sold.

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Antonio Conte is obsessed with winning. It’s part of what makes him such a fantastic manager. If the players are fatigued and on poor form, it’s OK to not play them. That does not mean bring them on after 60 minutes to see out a 2-1 game. Let a youngster do that job.