FOOTBALL NEWS

Conte is happy with the Premier League challenge

Now that Chelsea has taken on the Premier League's top spot, the most complicated time is upon the Blues, they need to remain sharp if they want to remain as the top club in England for the rest of the season. This will prove incredibly difficult given that England is the most competitive league in the world, the Liverpools, both Manchester clubs, Arsenals, Tottenhams and even West Ham Uniteds are close behind them and just require a single mistake in order to take the lead from their hands. 

But this difficult task is what fuels Antonio Conte's ambition, this is what he is actually craving everyday, something to be motivated for. He spoke to Gazzetta dello Sport and said:  "I am particularly happy for the players that we sit atop of the table at the moment. It is not only a reward for our hard work, but also shows that we are on the right path. We should not forget that we were in a bad situation after we lost to Liverpool and Arsenal six weeks ago. It will not be easy to remain top of the table until the end of the season.

"This Premier League season is perhaps the most difficult one ever. We have to battle it out with Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham and Manchester United. You do not have such excellence in any other league in the world. I want to show Chelsea that they made the right choice to appoint me for the next three years. That counts even more than winning titles. It has definitely helped me that we are not in Europe and that I had the entire team available all week when I had just started. It allowed me to work on the foundation.

"I started out with a 4-2-4 formation, just like at Bari, Siena and early on with Juventus. I then switched to 3-5-2 and eventually to 3-4-3 because it suits the team best. But Chelsea are a club that should always be in Europe."

Photo credit: Chelsea FC