THE body language gave it all away.
Chelsea boss Antonio Conte, beaten on penalties by Arsenal in the Community Shield, was not in the mood for small talk at Wembley. Neither was Blues chairman Bruce Buck, nor technical director Michael Emenalo. There was a shake of hands, and then they went their separate ways.
That very brief encounter, after Arsenal’s 4-1 win in the shootout, raises fears that this is the Jose Mourinho story playing out again. The mood around the place is dark, the atmosphere sombre.
It is no way for the champions of England to prepare for the defence of their Premier League title. They face Burnley at Stamford Bridge tomorrow and nobody really knows what to expect from Chelsea. They should be full of confidence after finishing seven points ahead of runners-up Tottenham last time out. Then there is the Champions League draw on August 24 and a return to Europe at the elite level. It should be a season to remember. Instead everybody is walking on egg shells again, fearing the worst after the failure to bring in the big names to satisfy Conte. He is a combustible character, testing the patience of Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli during his successful spell in Turin. Nothing has changed. There is a feeling that he deliberately laced his substitutes’ bench at Wembley with young, inexperienced players. If so, he made his point. Kyle Scott, 19, and Jeremie Boga, 20, have never made a senior appearance for Chelsea. Charly Musonda, on loan at Real Betis last season, came on eight minutes from time. It was his first appearance for the club. Conte has the support of his senior players. They know what it takes to win a title, to compete in the Premier League and Champions League. It needs strength in depth. There is widespread disbelief that they sold Nemanja Matic to a rival. He was an important player last season, providing an added layer of protection in front of the back four. When they were without him at Wembley last weekend, they did not have the legs to compete with Arsenal. Tiemoue Bakayoko, his direct replacement, is still recovering from a knee injury sustained at Monaco last season. Big things will be expected of him because Chelsea’s midfield was bullied by Arsenal at Wembley. N’Golo Kante was off the pace and Cesc Fabregas, partnering him in the centre, was anonymous.
Matic took responsibility in there when he was at Chelsea and his team-mates were always grateful to him for that. He will be a big miss. So, too, will Diego Costa, but Conte has sympathy over his decision to let him leave Stamford Bridge. With the obvious exception of his Brazilian and Spanish cohorts, most of the players had grown weary of the forward’s disruptive personality. Although they respected his goalscoring ability, Conte has the backing of his players over the decision to kick him into the long grass. Clearly he did not meet with the approval of the board as they try to find a buyer for the troubled striker.
His valuation decreases with every passing day and Chelsea will continue to swallow his £150,000-a-week wages until they can find a solution.
Despite Conte’s complaints he has spent heavily — forking out an initial £129million for Alvaro Morata, Antonio Rudiger and Bakayoko.
All three are settling in at Chelsea, arriving during another difficult period for the head coach.
Conte has to manage his way through this, to capture the imagination again with some impressive early-season results.
Without them, it could be time for another golden handshake.
From TheSun
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