Antonio Conte has a few million reasons not to take the job at Manchester United, namely the balance of his Chelsea contract. Rather than Conte following Jose Mourinho again, Mourinho should do as Conte did and take some time off once the inevitable happens.
Manchester United’s managerial search accelerated over the weekend with their limpid loss to West Ham. Whether United sack Jose Mourinho midseason or stick with him until May will be a large factor in choosing his replacement. Laurent Blanc is the best candidate to replace Mourinho on a permanent basis midseason, while Zinedine Zidane would likely not accept the job until June. If United choose not to go with Blanc or Zidane, they should still break the habit of recruiting from Chelsea FC.
Antonio Conte is doing the right thing by not working this year. For starters, he is enjoying the spiteful accounting of each and every Roman Ruble his contract guarantees. More importantly, Conte is giving himself the mental and emotional break coaches need after an extended run, particularly one that ended as poorly as his time at Chelsea.
Even if Conte is ready to return to the touchline next summer, Manchester United are not the right team. Paul Pogba and Antonio Conte may be the only two happy to see each other on the first day of training.
United do not have the centre-backs and wing-backs Conte needs. They do not even have players he could readily convert into those vital positions. With their current squad, Luke Shaw and Antonio Valencia could be his prospective wing-backs, while Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly would be the back-three. Whatever issues these players are causing Jose Mourinho’s defence would be magnified by the tactical and physical demands Antonio Conte would place on them.
Conte’s demanding style is the last thing United’s squad wants right now. If they are tired of the intensity of Mourinho’s training and the way he rides players until they produce at the level he demands, they will crack under Antonio Conte.
On the plus side, Antonio Conte could make great use of Manchester United’s forwards. If Conte could solve the wing-back situation, Romelu Lukaku would have more service in the box than he knows what to do with. Alexis Sanchez, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford would all flourish under Conte. Chelsea scored 85 goals when they won the Premier League in 2016/17. Manchester United have not come within 15 goals of that amount since Sir Alex Ferguson’s last season in 2012/13.
But that assumes the team had the platform of defenders necessary for his 3-5-2 / 3-4-3 to work. They do not, which means Antonio Conte would be pounding the table for transfers from day one. That is the situation which caused his downfall at Chelsea, and exacerbated Jose Mourinho’s three-year cycle at United.
Finally, Antonio Conte should not repeat Jose Mourinho’s mistake, even if it would be attenuated by the passage of a year. Mourinho should not have stayed in the Premier League, certainly should not have gone to one of Chelsea’s major rivals and most definitely should have done so months after getting his second sack at Stamford Bridge. There was too much tension and expectations laden with negativity for Mourinho to have a healthy relationship with anyone involved. The current situation at Old Trafford was sadly predictable, and it would be the same for Conte.
Spite is no more valid a reason for returning a jacket than it is for taking a job. Fortunately Antonio Conte does not think like Jose Mourinho, so no one is in danger of him standing on a Mancunian touchline next season.
Mourinho would do well to imitate Conte as he looks ahead to how he will spend next season. The Special One is one Pogba Instagram Story away from being The Strait-jacketed One. He needs some time away, perhaps only a year, and can then look for what is available beyond the Premier League. Manchester United should look beyond the league, as well, for his replacement.