Conte sets his stamp over Chelsea already

After his time with Italy came to an end following Euro 2016, Antonio Conte began his new job as Chelsea coach, with his first training session on Wednesday.

“When he speaks, listen to him” was the advice from faithful lieutenant Leonardo Bonucci, “and do not argue.”

Those words of wisdom are well-founded, and already Conte has begun to assert his authority on his new charges. Their first training session was a double ibe and it may well not be the last time that happens.
“Be prepared to slog,” Conte told his players, “this will be the hardest summer of your lives.”
With Bonucci’s future still undecided, his projected move to Manchester City in doubt, he found himself talking about his former boss at both Juventus and Italy.
“In Italy,” he continued, “we nicknamed Conte the Godfather. His impact on the Premier League will be immediate. Nobody gave Italy a chance at the European Championship, but we only lost to the world champions after penalties.
“Antonio loves leaders but he will not tolerate players thinking they are more important than him. He is the boss and if you listen to him, you will see he is one of the best coaches in football.”

Chelsea will soon get to put that theory to the test. Conte is set to be unveiled on Thursday ahead of the team travelling to Austria later in the day. There they will play Rapid Vienna on Saturday, before going to the United States for more friendlies.
The games against Liverpool, Milan and Real Madrid will prepare the Blues for the first real test, the opening match of the season, against West Ham United, on August 15.
He will be able to call upon new striker Michy Batshuayi, joined from Marseille, and possibly N’Golo Kante, for whom Chelsea have agreed a deal with Leicester City.
With the likes of Radja Nainggolan, Joao Mario and Andre Gomes also on his shopping list, it looks to be a busy summer at Stamford Bridge, where one of Conte’s first tasks may be dissuading Cesc Fabregas from moving to Manchester United.
It promises to be an interesting month.