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Chelsea finally put Antonio Conte out of his misery

By Jake Walerius

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 19: Manager of Chelsea, Antonio Conte gestures during the Emirates FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 19, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Brunskill Ltd/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 19: Manager of Chelsea, Antonio Conte gestures during the Emirates FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on May 19, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Brunskill Ltd/Getty Images) /
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Chelsea finally fired Antonio Conte on Thursday, paving the way for Maurizio Sarri’s arrival at Stamford Bridge.

Antonio Conte’s two-year stint as Chelsea manager came to an end on Thursday, per Matt Law of The Telegraph, paving the way for former Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri to take over ahead of the 2018-19 season, which kicks off for Chelsea on Aug. 11 against Huddersfield.

The news brings to a close almost a year’s worth of rumors that began shortly after Conte won the Premier League title with the club in his first season, leading them to a then-record 30 wins in the process.

The following summer, however, saw the manager’s relationship with Roman Abramovich begin to crumble, as the club failed to acquire several of Conte’s first-choice transfer targets. That culminated in a disappointing fifth-place league finish and an FA Cup win.

Conte wasn’t exactly shy about his dislike of Abramovich, and spent much of the season taking veiled (and sometimes not so veiled shots) at the Blues owner. Given the unrest, it’s a wonder he did as well as he did. Such is the Chelsea way.

The assumption was Conte would be gone shortly after the conclusion of the season, but with Sarri, reportedly Chelsea’s preferred replacement, embroiled in his own drama with Napoli, nothing changed.

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And then still nothing changed. And then nothing changed some more. And then preseason started, with Conte in charge and Chelsea yet to make a single signing (or even to have been seriously linked to a signing, other than Sarri).

With the World Cup to finish on Sunday, and Sarri expected to be appointed soon, the Blues have a lot of work to do over the next month, especially now the transfer window closes in the middle, rather than at the end, of August.

Sarri did an impressive job on a small budget at Napoli, but Chelsea’s squad don’t look obviously well-suited to playing his preferred high-pressing style. The signing of Jorginho, also from Napoli, would help, but there’s a long way to go.

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