Chelsea vs. Antonio Conte: Both sides make strong, sympathetic cases

Chelsea stands at an all-too-familiar crossroads. Antonio Conte’s days as head coach are seemingly coming to an end, and uncertainty is eclipsing the future of certain star players.

Perhaps for the briefest of moments, Saturday’s FA Cup victory arrested the deteriorating relationship between Chelsea and their supporters. For many it just brought a sigh of relief at the end of a tumultuous season. For others, humbling Jose Mourinho redeemed 2017/18.

Roman Abramovich’s revolving door policy is set to continue with Antonio Conte becoming its latest victim. It is difficult to put forth contrary opinions, considering how well Abramovich’s ownership has served the club over the last 15 years. But in most other cases the situation between the Board and the gaffer became untenable. This time, both sides have equally reasonable appeals in their favour.

Chelsea’s Board: Avoiding mistakes leads to new mistakes

To their credit, the Chelsea board made their reservations about handing Conte complete autonomy quite clear right from the off. They offered the Italian tactician the role of a “Head Coach” and not “Manager.” This meant Conte had less say in the club’s transfer dealings than, for example, Mourinho had.

It’s easy to construe this as an expedient ploy by the Board and tag them as power-hungry. But it’s also important to understand how surrendering major control to an incoming manager could spell disaster for the club in the long run. Fans just need to look across London at Arsenal, who were clearly held back by an authoritarian megalomaniac like Arsene Wenger (merci, Arsene, for showing Chelsea what to avoid?).

Moreover, it could trigger financial instability at the club. In today’s times with the (selectively) strict Financial Fair Play rules, inviting financial duress is far from wise. Overtly controlling managers with irrefutable power may end up signing their favorite players on unnecessarily long contracts with various bonuses. If things go awry with the manager and his replacement has a diametrically different philosophy, the club and the Board are responsible for disposing the now-redundant players.

Had the Board offered Conte such a role and power, they could be in this exact situation. Maurizio Sarri is a potential replacement, and he endorses a radically different brand of football than Conte.

Antonio Conte: Lost expectations

Chelsea announced Antonio Conte right before Euro 2016. The Italian’s extremely impressive performance with a sub-par Italy side, who almost knocked out World Cup champion Germany, only raised the already-high expectations of Chelsea fans.

The former Juventus manager delivered more than any Chelsea fan could have asked for in his debut season. After a fantastic start, his perfect record was marred by disappointing results against Swansea, Liverpool and Arsenal. This led to him resorting to his favoured three-man backline, which resulted in a streak of 13 consecutive league wins. This run virtually secured Chelsea’s fifth Premier League title, and sparked a mini-revolution across Europe as many sides switched to a three-man backline.

Antonio Conte clearly expected the Board to reciprocate his outstanding achievements on the pitch by letting him bring in players of his choice. Moreover, Conte probably needed the Board to assist him in acquiring his favoured targets, considering the whole text message row with Diego Costa.

But the Board signed players who were in complete opposition to the names in the head coach’s shortlist. Conte wanted Leonardo Bonucci, Danilo, Antonio Candreva, Alex Sandro, Fernando Llorente and perhaps even Romelu Lukaku. Instead the Board gave him Tiemoue Bakayoko, Davide Zappacosta and Danny Drinkwater. Only the signing of Alvaro Morata drawing a positive response from the Italian.

Bookmark for later: Maurizio Sarri is everything Chelsea fans claim to dislike in Antonio Conte

The quizzical decision to sanction the sale of Nemanja Matic to a direct rival plunged Conte into a seemingly irreversible irritable mood. The total dealings of the summer transfer window evoked feelings of disillusionment in Conte’s mind.

This clearly reflected in the team’s performances as they followed up a disappointing Community Shield performance with a shock opening day home defeat to Burnley. Murmurs of evident discord and potential rift within the club swamped SW6.

Media reports of a “crisis” and Conte’s imminent sacking further added to the tension. Asking Conte about his future at his pre-match press conferences became a trend which persisted through the FA Cup final.

Inconsistent performances and an unusually porous defence defined the first half of the season. The quality of football deteriorated as the increased demands of the Champions League took a toll on the threadbare squad. This led to Conte expressing his displeasure at the Board for failing to land his top targets. He began unnecessarily tinkering with the team and formations, making untimely substitutions and retreating into conservative football.

These were all Conte’s way of dropping hints towards the Board. Cagey performances were almost always followed up by an equally cagey and disinterested Conte in the post-match interviews.

The January transfer window was presumably the final straw for Conte, who once again saw his primary targets slip away. The Board only managed to bring in Emerson Palmieri and Olivier Giroud to bolster the fading hopes of a top-four finish.

An unprecedented slump in form followed. The Blues broke all the wrong records as they fell to heavy defeats to Watford and Bournemouth, and then suffered a historic home loss to Tottenham. Some sections of the fanbase began to call for Conte’s head, as it became evident the Italian could no longer motivate his players, irrespective of the occasion.

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Despite winning the FA Cup, Antonio Conte’s sacking seems a matter of when, not if. Much of the issue now hinges on his severance package, which could range from £9-25 million. The Board is understandably reluctant to pay, and Conte is unwilling to forgo it by resigning. Conte’s future is also invariably tied to that of star players like Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard, who are unwilling to put pen to paper until Conte’s future is resolved.

The loss of Steve Holland looms over the whole discussion. Conte’s command of English is not the best, making direct communication with his players a sore chore for him. Steve Holland was a great servant to the club, one who stuck with these players despite the many managerial overhauls over the years. He was undoubtedly the strongest link between Conte and his players.

Verdict?

A make-or-break summer transfer window is now on the cards for Chelsea. A managerial change could accompany the expected and needed squad overhaul. Sacking Conte would be a harsh move, considering he has not received the backing his predecessors did. But it could also be the right move considering how it may affect several players’ futures.

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Regardless of the outcome, it’s hard to disagree that Antonio Conte’s reign at Chelsea will be looked upon fondly by many fans, both for his on-field ‘serial winning’ and off-field gratitude towards them.