Antonio Conte opens up on the difficulties of his first year in England despite Chelsea's title success

The Italian's wife and daughter have now moved into a house near Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham and Conte is adamant he and his family are now fully settled in England

Cobham

Friday 13 October 2017 23:16 BST

Antonio Conte reveals his first year in England wasn't all good despite success on the pitch (Chelsea FC)

Antonio Conte has opened up to his year of “suffering” in English football despite winning the Premier League title with Chelsea.

While events on the pitch were successful, the Italian endured a tough time off it away from wife Elisabetta and daughter Vittoria.

But now the pair have moved into a house near Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham and Conte is adamant he and his family are now fully settled in England.

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

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1/5The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

1. The second half of Arsenal 3-0 Chelsea, 24 September

The biggest defeat of Chelsea’s season, but also one of the biggest reasons they have won the title. It brought an epiphany. The way that Arsenal simply tore at Antonio Conte’s defence to go 3-0 up by half-time made the Italian realise something was fundamentally wrong with his team. There were huge gaps in the team structure, and it looked at that point like there was still a huge gap between Chelsea and even challenging for the title. That instantly changed, because Conte changed the formation. In that second half, he went to a three-at-the-back that had been on his mind but hadn’t yet been tried on a pitch. Chelsea immediately went on that 13-game winning run, never really looking back.

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The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

2. Chelsea 4-0 Manchester United, 23 October

Chelsea had at this point impressively won two games in a row, and looked like they were building, but this match showed there was so much more to it than just a temporary transformation from the change in formation. It showed the quantum leap they had already made. There was of course much more to this match than just winning a big game, too, given that the players were up against their old manager Jose Mourinho just 10 months after he had been sacked following a sensational team collapse in 2015-16. They performed like they had a point to prove, and made an utterly compelling argument from the very start, when Pedro scored after mere seconds. It felt like many ghosts from the previous campaign had been banished, as well as any lingering doubts. They were on another level.

Getty Images

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

3. Manchester City 1-3 Chelsea, 3 December

Arguably the Premier League game of the season in terms of excitement, but also the game when Chelsea’s winning run became an exhilarating title surge; when momentum really picked up - and that despite City doing so much to try and stop it. This was just another case of turning a negative into a positive, as they completely turned a game. Determined to get their top spot back, Pep Guardiola’s City absolutely battered Chelsea in the first half, and could have been out of sight. Conte’s side just about held firm despite Gary Cahill’s own goal, though, tightened up at half-time and then responded with a series of rapid attacks City simply couldn’t handle. Really, it was the response of champions, and the moment when Chelsea properly emerged as the obvious next champions. That’s how significant the win felt. That’s how much confidence Conte said they gleaned from it.

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The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

4. Leicester City 0-3 Chelsea, 14 January

If the defeat at Arsenal was a defining moment for Conte’s tactics, this win at the former champions was the defining moment in terms of everything else to do with the team. Sure, the final score may make it look elementary, but the week had been anything but. It was maybe the most challenging. Chelsea’s 13-game winning streak had just come ended at Tottenham and their top scorer's Blues career was coming to an end, after Diego Costa got into an altercation at training following speculation he might be on the move to China. It really looked like it could all cave in, when Chelsea would lose their edge, and their nerve. Instead, it brought more progress. The team killed Leicester 3-0 thanks to two goals from Marcos Alonso and one from Pedro, before Conte completely killed the controversy by stonewalling it in his press conference. It sent a statement to Costa to get back in line, and a statement to the rest of the Premier League that there was so much more to this team than one scorer.

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The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

5. Chelsea 4-2 Tottenham Hotspur, 22 April

This may have been an FA Cup semi-final, but it was one with a significance far beyond making the final. It was really the final test in the title race, a referendum on which of the two sides was actually better. That may seem ridiculous now, but that was very much the feel that of week. A stuttering Chelsea had been resoundingly beaten 2-0 at Manchester United, allowing a surging Spurs to cut the lead to four points. It seemed like it was all only going in one direction, but that a Tottenham win could completely divert the destination of the title. There was instead only ever one winner. Conte’s side simply cut Spurs' legs away. Every time Tottenham responded, Chelsea just showed they had that bit more, they were that bit better. The impressive high quality of the two clinching goals from Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matic only emphasised it all. It was the story of the season. Every setback only brought another surge.

AFP/Getty Images

“It was difficult for sure,” he said of his first year at the club. “For me to have my family with me is very important. Last season, honestly, I suffered a lot because when you arrive in a new country and you are alone and know that your family don't stay here it is not simple.

“This season I am very happy because they are with me, my daughter and wife and for us it is a fantastic experience. I think that this experience for my daughter is an incredible experience and a great gift that I am doing her. Last season was very difficult for my wife because she divided her life between Italy to stay with our daughter and me in London.

“But now for sure it is great for me and my family and above all for my daughter it is a fantastic experience and also for my wife to live in a new country and learn a new language.”

Conte did admit that his family are now having to handle the highs and lows of football rather than enjoy the escapism they had last term.

Conte won the title in his first season in England (Getty)

“My work is always the same,” he said ahead of Saturday’s London derby at bottom of the table Crystal Palace. “It is worse for my family because last season they were very far and instead this season we are together and my wife and my daughter and they live the same feeling, if we win, we draw, we lose and for my family it is more difficult.

“It was better last season to live very far, and feel only through the phone but I am happy that they stay here with me.”

Conte had been linked with a move back to Italy and in particular AC Milan following translated reports, he claims were incorrect, had labelled him “homesick.”

5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

“I did an interview two weeks ago and the translation was wrong,” he suggested. “All I said was that one day in the future I would like to go back to Italy. But you know my position. I have two years contract with Chelsea and am happy to work for this club and with my players. I like to have this great feeling with our fans.

"Every coach, when they start, they work with the club and hope they will stay for a long time and build something important. At the same time, I always say our job is difficult and is strange."

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Antonio Conte opens up on the difficulties of his first year in England despite Chelsea's title success

The Italian's wife and daughter have now moved into a house near Chelsea’s training ground in Cobham and Conte is adamant he and his family are now fully settled in England

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The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

1. The second half of Arsenal 3-0 Chelsea, 24 September

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

2. Chelsea 4-0 Manchester United, 23 October

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

3. Manchester City 1-3 Chelsea, 3 December

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

4. Leicester City 0-3 Chelsea, 14 January

The 5 key moments that won Chelsea the title

5. Chelsea 4-2 Tottenham Hotspur, 22 April

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