Antonio Conte suggests Chelsea could have caught Man City with two big signings

Redaction Simon Brett with Dan Murphy
Published on 2024-02-15 11:00:00

Chelsea’s former manager, Antonio Conte, has suggested that his team could have challenged Manchester City’s dominance of the Premier League if they had signed two key players during his tenure. The Italian and City’s manager, Pep Guardiola, both arrived in the Premier League in 2016. In his first season, Conte led Chelsea to a league title, but the fortunes for the two managers shifted drastically in subsequent seasons.

Chelsea dropped to 5th place the following season, while Manchester City, under Guardiola’s leadership, claimed the league title with a record-breaking 100 points. Conte’s tenure at Chelsea concluded that summer, leaving Guardiola still standing strong at the Etihad Stadium.

Conte believes that had Chelsea acquired the services of Virgil van Dijk and Romelu Lukaku, his team would have been in a better position to compete with Manchester City, resulting in a different outcome for the club. He expressed his sentiments in an interview, acknowledging Guardiola’s status as the best coach in the world, capable of taking City to new heights by augmenting their squad every season.

The Italian manager spoke of the missed opportunity to sign the two crucial players, stating that they could have helped Chelsea become more dominant in England. However, despite this claim, the transformational impact of these signings remains speculative.

Manchester City’s and Liverpool’s reign at the top of English football has been unrivaled, with robust recruitment and consistent tactical systems providing the foundation for their success. This fact underscores the challenges Chelsea has faced due to frequent managerial changes and a lack of team stability.

Conte’s proposal poses an interesting conjecture, but it seems unlikely that two signings alone would have been sufficient to disrupt Manchester City’s momentum. This has proven to be the case, especially when considering the exceptional form of both City and Liverpool, which has been difficult for any team to contend with in recent years.

Read Original article on Manchester City News