Antonio Conte has claimed that teams only hire him after failing to achieve ‘recent’ success, aiming particular digs at Chelsea, Juventus and Tottenham
Former Chelsea and Tottenham coach Antonio Conte aimed digs at his former clubs, appearing to accuse them of lacking a winning mentality when he took over both clubs.
Conte first arrived in England back in the summer of 2016 when he took over from Blues interim boss Guus Hiddink after one of Chelsea's worst seasons in the Premier League where they finished 10th the season after winning the title.
In his first season with the Blues, Conte won back the Premier League while finishing as runners-up in the FA Cup before winning the FA Cup in 2017-18. However, it was be his final match as Chelsea boss as he was replaced by compatriot Maurizio Sarri for the next season.
He would then spend two years at Inter Milan before returning to London to take over Spurs, with who he managed Champions League qualification in his first season before securing the club's best ever start to a season.
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However, the Italian is yet to find a club since parting ways with Spurs in March this year following his incredible rant where he called his players 'selfish' after failing to hold onto a 3-1 lead against Southampton.
Conte has appeared to claim that teams only hire him when they are in difficult positions, and would like to coach where everything is flowing very well even before his arrival.
"One day I would like to coach a team that has recently won," he admitted at a Sports Festival in Trento organised by La Gazzetta dello Sport. "For example, I took [over at] Chelsea coming off a seventh-place finish, Juve after [they finished] seventh," he added.
"When I hear people say that history doesn’t count, for me it’s a big lie. When you enter the headquarters, the sports centre, and you turn and look... being surrounded by trophies, by cups, it leads you to say ‘these have done it, we are here to try to repeat what has been done in the past.
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"When there is history, even if there is dust on it, the winning mentality you find and the path becomes less complicated. When you win you understand what victory brings, being celebrated and writing history; then you want to repeat yourself and struggle to accept defeat."
Conte has been linked with other managerial moves but reports have most recently been suggesting that he could be in for a return to Italy to take over reigning Serie A champions Napoli. Following the departure of Luciano Spalletti to the Italian national team in the summer, Rudi Garcia took the hot seat in Naples.
However, it has been a poor start to the season for his side, as they sit in fifth place after eight matches, seven points off top of the table AC Milan. Now Conte has further fueled the rumours by claiming he wants to join a club that has had recent success.