CONTE
There's a grand old saying from football's lexicon of
quotations most often attributed to Bill Shankly.
Shanks was probably not the first to coin it but he adhered
to the belief that when building a team a manager needed eight to carry the
piano and three to play it.
Antonio Conte is on the same page albeit with the modern
twist of an 18-man match-day squad.
He picked his favourite three artists: Eden Hazard, Diego
Costa and Pedro, and created a team to ensure they flourished.
Bad news for Oscar, Willian and Cesc Fabregas but good for
Roman Abramovich and helpful to English football.
It is not simply about splurging the Premier League riches
on as much talent as can be afforded and cramming it all in.
Chelsea's fifth title of the Roman Empire owed everything to
shape, balance and environment and a coach who understood the requirements of a
successful team.
Arsenal 3 Chelsea 0
The undisputed trigger for Conte's revolution. A jarring
defeat in September; a third game without a win. Chelsea were eighth with 10
points from six games, eight points behind runaway leaders Manchester City.
The Italian decided if things were going to go this wrong
they might as well go wrong on his terms.
He moved to a back-three midway through the second-half at
Arsenal and would explain his feelings to Roman Abramovich during a series of
intense lunch meetings at the training ground. With the backing of the owner,
he set to some serious changes.
John Terry, Branislav Ivanovic, Oscar and John Obi Mikel
would not start again in the Premier League.
Three were sold in January and
Terry will leave at the end of the season.
Tactical High Jinks
Without a late swoop for David Luiz and Marcos Alonso in the
summer market, there would have been no scope for Conte to flex into his
preferred back-three formation.
Chelsea's recruiters missed out on centre halves last summer
but knew what the coach wanted and finally delivered, even if £23million for
Alonso from Fiorentina seemed a bit steep at the time.
After six goals from 34 brilliantly consistent games it
looks great value. Luiz thrived with the responsibility of the defensive
keystone. On the right, Conte took a chance and converted Victor Moses into a
wing back.
Gary Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta, as ever, performed their
duties capably and without fuss.
The impact was stunning. With this quintet in place Chelsea
have been beaten only once in the Premier League (at Tottenham in January).
Lucky for some
Thirteen wins in a row set a new record and peak Chelsea was
in evidence during three home games in the autumn.
Leicester, Manchester United and Everton were blown away in
a blur of a dozen goals scored with none conceded.
Briefly, Conte's transformation had everyone transfixed
before containment plans started to hatch.
October's 4-0 win against Manchester United finally cleansed
Jose Mourinho from the system and heralded a new dawn at Stamford Bridge.
The United boss stood unacknowledged as the home crowd
serenaded Conte, a new hero. They were no longer under Mourinho's spell.
Not a single point was dropped in October, November or
December.
Chelsea climbed to the top after a 1-0 win at Middlesbrough
in November and by the end of 2016, they were six clear.
The golden run ended at Tottenham on January 4 but they have
topped the league for nearly six months.
...but the Manchester United boss ended the game furious
with Conte after a 4-0 humbling
Playing the Piano
In the new system, Hazard was spared some defensive duties
and moved into an inside left position. In 10 games between mid-October and
Boxing Day, he scored seven.
Conte opted for Pedro's sheer pace over Willian's mileage
and set-piece accuracy and Costa shouldered the goal burden, most of them
scored before the turn of the year.
Fabregas, not willing to move despite life in the margins,
refused to complain, got fitter and became a very useful asset, usually from
the bench when a stubborn defence could not be unpicked.
Sometimes he'd start when Chelsea expected to dominate
possession and the physical presence of Nemanja Matic was less important.
Carrying it
Mourinho's Chelsea - the one built in 2004 and which endured
until his return in 2013 thanks to the personalities of Terry, Frank Lampard,
Didier Drogba and Petr Cech - was famed for its mental strength and resilience.
Conte has instilled the same inner belief and ability to
respond to setbacks. Defeat at Spurs was followed by a 3-0 win at Leicester.
The shock defeat by Crystal Palace was followed by a win
against Manchester City. And after defeat at Manchester United they won the FA
Cup semi-final and fired four past Southampton, with Costa ending a personal
drought of seven games without a goal.
When they were bruised Chelsea hit back. The football became
less fluent but they refused to let any rot take hold.
Thibaut Courtois made big saves at important moments. One
from Patrick van Aanholt at Sunderland in December preserved a 1-0 win and was
probably his best of the season.
Cahill's late winner at Stoke in March was a key
psychological moment for the champions. He has not only taken the captain's
armband from Terry but also his knack for an important goal.
N'Golo Kante
Perhaps the signing of last summer. More kudos to Chelsea's
wheelers and dealers who moved quickly and clinically. Kante won both the PFA
Player of the Year and the FWA Footballer of the Year awards.
His form has soared since the tactical switch to a 3-4-2-1
formation freed him from a restrictive holding midfield position to roam as he
did at Leicester.
FA Cup semi-final
With nine wins in a row Tottenham had closed the gap to four
points and were emerging as the only threat to the procession when they met at
Wembley.
Could Spurs eat at Chelsea's nerves? No chance. Conte, missing
captain Cahill, refused to blink. He left Costa and Hazard on the bench and
brought them and Fabregas on to devastating effect in a 4-2 win.
Albeit in a different competition, the crushing of their
closest rivals restored confidence levels and goals flowed again.
Four were fired past Southampton, three past Everton and -
after Tottenham faltered at West Ham - three past Middlesbrough.
Conte Factor
It is impossible to underestimate the impact Conte has made.
Abramovich trusted his tactical instinct and he has
controlled the squad which rebelled against Mourinho.
He satisfied those on the fringes and kept them interested
in his project and nurtured some of the club's own young players, notably
Nathaniel Chalobah.
He has steered the Costa tempest in the right direction and
respectfully managed the dethroning of 'Captain Leader Legend' Terry.
Chelsea supporters have fallen for his unbridled passion on
the touchline, his reluctance to trade in excuses and, most of all, they adore
his unerring eye for making the right move at the right time.
CHELSEA SEASON
2016-17
2016:
15 Aug Chelsea 2–1 West Ham
20 Aug Watford 1–2 Chelsea
27 Aug Chelsea 3–0 Burnley
11 Sept Swansea 2–2 Chelsea
16 Sept Chelsea 1–2 Liverpool
24 Sept Arsenal 3–0 Chelsea
1 Oct Hull 0–2 Chelsea
15 Oct Chelsea 3–0 Leicester City
23 Oct Chelsea 4–0 Manchester Utd
30 Oct Southampton 0–2 Chelsea
5 Nov Chelsea 5–0 Everton
20 Nov Middlesbrough 0–1 Chelsea
26 Nov Chelsea 2–1 Tottenham
3 Dec Manchester City 1–3 Chelsea
11 Dec Chelsea 1–0 West Brom
14 Dec Sunderland 0–1 Chelsea
17 Dec Crystal Palace 0–1 Chelsea
26 Dec Chelsea 3–0 Bournemouth
31 Dec Chelsea 4–2 Stoke
2017:
4 Jan Tottenham 2–0 Chelsea
14 Jan Leicester 0–3 Chelsea
22 Jan Chelsea 2–0 Hull
31 Jan Liverpool 1–1 Chelsea
4 Feb Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal
12 Feb Burnley 1–1 Chelsea
25 Feb Chelsea 3–1 Swansea
6 Mar West Ham 1–2 Chelsea
18 Mar Stoke 1–2 Chelsea
1 Apr Chelsea 1–2 Crystal Palace
5 Apr Chelsea 2–1 Manchester City
9 Apr Bournemouth 1–3 Chelsea
16 Apr Manchester Utd 2–0 Chelsea
25 Apr Chelsea 4–2 Southampton
30 Apr Everton 0–3 Chelsea
8 May Chelsea 3–0 Middlesbrough
12 May West Brom 0-1 Chelsea
16 May Chelsea v Watford
21 May Chelsea v Sunderland
