ANTONIO CONTE is coming under increasing boardroom scrutiny after Chelsea’s poor start to the season.
And Stamford Bridge officials have even taken to predicting — correctly — which excuse Conte will use to explain his side’s woes. The Blues’ title-winning boss is starting to feel the heat again after back-to-back league defeats.
Defender Cesar Azpilicueta confessed: “The mood at the moment is not the best. The reality is we have gone three games without a win.”
Blues technical director Michael Emenalo, the man in charge of player recruitment, was called to a post-match meeting after Wednesday’s 3-3 Champions League draw with Roma and did not arrive home until nearly 3am on Thursday.
After the 1-0 home loss to Manchester City on September 30, one senior Blues executive said Conte would use “fixture congestion” as an excuse. At Crystal Palace last weekend, when they crashed 2-1, the same official predicted the boss would blame injuries and squad depth.
Conte did just that but also threw in the demand to develop young players after he brought on Charly Musonda, 21, to try and rescue the game. The champions, who host Watford tomorrow, are already nine points behind leaders City.
They have lost three times in eight matches — their second-worst start to a Prem season since Roman Abramovich took over in 2003.
The only time they lost more by this stage — four in 2015-16 — Jose Mourinho was axed before Christmas.
From The Sun
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