Italian Mastermind On A Sticky Wicket: Should Chelsea Take A Tough Call?

Antonio Conte’s time at Stamford Bridge has been quite topsy-turvy. There was a huge sense of optimism when Chelsea appointed the Italian, who had masterminded Italy’s impressive run in the European championships in 2016.

And that optimism paid off when the former Juventus head coach landed Chelsea a Premier League title in his debut season, which eventually led to even more optimism at the start of his second season with the club.

Unfortunately for all the Chelsea fanatics, however, Antonio Conte is not having a great time of it at Stamford Bridge this season, as it seems. Following an unreal debut season in the Premier League, the Italian has struggled to impose his tactical authority this season, dawdling among the top six throughout the course of the season while Manchester City run away from the title.

However, what has actually kept Conte in the news is his off-field behaviour with players, fellow coaches, staff and even official board members. The 48-year-old reportedly criticized Chelsea’s management for their poor performance in the transfer market in the summer, which was before his spat with former Chelsea player and last season’s top scorer Diego Costa, which eventually forced the Spanish international to leave the club and make a move back to Atletico Madrid.

Furthermore, the former Juventus coach also had a spat with key defender David Luiz while ignoring the likes of Michy Batshuayi, who is thriving in the Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund.

Therefore, considering the fact that Roman Abramovich has already voiced his willingness of playing the ‘fantasy football like Barcelona‘ from next season, is this the right time for Chelsea to finally sack their Italian mastermind?

The answer would be pretty mixed, considering the fact that Chelsea might be on the brink of a huge crisis, should they choose to sack their boss, during the course of the season. However, that being said, the Italian is also the root of Chelsea’s recent problem both on and off the field.

The Blues are currently standing fourth in the Premier League table and are running the risk of missing out on Champions League action next season, should their poor form under Antonio Conte continue. Therefore, sacking the Italian might not prove to be a bad decision at all, considering the fact that Blues always have the option to appoint the well-experienced Guus Hiddink as their interim coach for the remainder of the season(!)

With the likes of Maurizio Sarri, Thomas Tuchel and Luis Enrique available in the market next summer, Chelsea should definitely stop persisting with Antonio Conte and give the job to someone more responsible who can settle things, following months of mediocrity and lack of stability all around.