Antonio Conte hails Chelsea display as almost perfect after Champions League draw with Barcelona

The Chelsea manager was pleased with his team's display against the La Liga leaders despite the concession of a late away goal in their round-of-16 first leg

Antonio Conte directs his team from the touchline (AFP/Getty Images)

Antonio Conte hailed a Chelsea performance that was “very close” to a “perfect game” after their 1-1 draw with Barcelona at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening. Chelsea were 15 minutes away from a win and while Conte was disappointed that they allowed Barcelona back into the game, he was proud of the players who executed his tactical gameplan.

Conte had said at his press conference on Monday that Chelsea would need a “perfect” performance to get a result here but they very nearly got it, and would have done had they not gifted away the equaliser.

“We were very close to playing the perfect game,” Conte said. “I think we paid dearly for one mistake. Against this opponent, if you make a mistake, you pay. It’s a pity because I think tonight, at the end of the game, we are disappointed with the final result. It’s a pity because, in that moment, the sensation was that Barcelona were fighting a lot to create a chance to score.”

In fact, Conte said that his team were aiming for a second goal just when Messi scored Barcelona’s reply. “Without the mistake, Barcelona were in great difficulty to find and create a chance to score,” he said. “I saw at 1-0 the possibility of us to try and exploit the situation in the best way to score a second.”

It was Andreas Christensen’s square pass that allowed Barcelona to equalise but Conte was steadfast in his defence of the centre-back, who started ahead of Gary Cahill and impressed until his costly error. Asked whether he regretted playing Christensen ahead of Cahill, Conte was adamant. “No, no, no, absolutely not,” he said. “Christensen’s performance was great, incredible. We are talking about a player who is only 21 years old. It’s great that he is able to play this game with this maturity and personality. Christensen, for me, was one of the best players tonight. He played a top game and I’m very pleased with his performance.”

Conte also took heart from how his players executed his plan, which he said showed that the squad is still on his side, and that they believed in his work. “I think the players are not stupid,” Conte said. “When you prepare a plan with them – the idea is the coach’s to prepare, but you must have a conversation with them and show them videos so they understand why we’re doing this plan. A coach can have a fantastic plan but, if the players don’t believe in this plan, you are dead.”