The new season will come to a brief half after this weekend thanks to this ever-terribly timed first FIFA international break, but after that, the 2017-18 season will be well and truly under way. The transfer window will be closed, the chess pieces will be in place, and it will be completely up to Antonio Conte to move them as he sees fit.
Until then, things are a bit out of his control, with key players like Eden Hazard still injured and others, like Tiemoué Bakayoko, Álvaro Morata, and Pedro nursing injuries or fitness issues of varying degrees, as the Chelsea Board work feverishly in the background to try to do what they’ve failed to do all summer and make significant improvements in the depth of the squad. But whether that happens or not — and the Board did pull off two key signings in the final 24-48 hours last summer, if nothing else — Conte knows that everyone will have to do their part and put in the 150 per cent effort required.
“I think every challenge is for me, but also for the club, the players and the fans. Not only me. We think with 'us', not 'I'. This is very important. We are trying to strengthen our squad and, if we are in the transfer market, that means we need to improve the squad. That's logical. Otherwise we'd stay out of the transfer market.”
Much has been made of Conte’s supposed displeasure with the club’s transfer activity, but at least in public, the head coach has repeatedly acknowledged the Board’s efforts in making the right signings, or at least trying to. He is, after all, “just” the head coach and his primary brief as usual is to work with and improve the players at his disposal.
“As I said last week, for me it's very important to continue to improve, to continue to work with my players on the pitch, to improve my players and my team. These are the most important things for me.
“For sure, the club is trying to strengthen our squad and our team. They are working very hard to do this, but you know very well the situation. The situation is this. We have to continue to work, to work. Also, if we continue to stay with these players, I'm very happy.
“It's not important to feel strong. It's important you show you are strong on the pitch. In every case, we have to continue to work. In every case, if the club is very good on the transfer market to get new players, I will be very happy. Otherwise, I repeat, I have to continue to work with my players and I'm happy to work with the players we have.”
There is however little doubt that if Chelsea fail to acquire a couple more players in the next five days, the squad will be very-very short of what’s ideally required for what we’re hoping will be a 60-game season.
“First of all, I hope after the international break to have the whole team: in this case, also to have the possibility to start, to think about Eden Hazard. But I'm not sure about this.
“Then we are going to play seven games in a month, and I need to rotate the players. If someone is thinking that I can use only 11 players or 13 players, it's impossible. Impossible. I have to rotate these players. But we must be ready. We must be ready to face this situation.”
-Antonio Conte; source: Evening Standard
And while all that sounds a bit ominous, Conte has also reassured that he’s actually feeling more relaxed this season than last, though that appears to be down wholly to his increasing familiarity with the club, the English language (three 2-hour lessons per week continuing, apparently), and London itself.
“After one season you start to learn a lot of new situations, you start to live a lot of situations. Last season was totally new for me. I am much more relaxed than last season because you learn to work for a new club. Last season was my first time. Now, after one year, I learned a lot from the past. For this reason, I am more relaxed and I am enjoying the situation better than last season. I am very calm.
“Every season is tough. Maybe this season will be tougher for many reasons, also because we won last season and this season we have to play another competition. But we must ready.”
-Antonio Conte; source: Chelsea FC
The challenge is undoubtedly harder this season. The Premier League continues to improve and our Champions League group isn’t exactly a cakewalk either. Meanwhile, the transfer market is bonkers and nobody knows how to value players anymore. But above all, there is now something at stake, both for Conte (and his staff and maybe even the players), and for the fans as well.
Forza!