Chelsea
would be appointing a similar type of manager to Jose Mourinho if they make
Antonio Conte their next head coach, according to the
Sunday Supplement
panel.
The Italy boss is expected to take over from interim manager Guus Hiddink at
Stamford Bridge this summer, reports
Sky Italy.
Conte would bring with him a track record of success from the three years he
spent managing Juventus, where he won three Serie A titles in a row between
2012-14.
However, the Italian is also a divisive and often combustible figure - much
like Mourinho - according to the
Sun's head of sport Shaun Custis.
"He is fairly controversial," he said. "He's also a fairly lively character.
"You hear that [owner Roman] Abramovich has had enough of Mourinho and you
bring in a guy who is madder, certainly on the touchline.
"We've had a lovely calm under Hiddink where it's almost Sven-Goran Eriksen
like. He's calm, he's lovely, everything runs along. Look how the players
have responded, everybody's happy and this is the way to go.
"But you're talking to Hiddink in the week and ask is there any chance of
staying on and he says: 'No certainly not.' There was never any question of
him staying.
"It seems like they are going back to a guy who knows how to win, but is a
similar type of character and you think: 'This is going to be volatile
again.' Do Chelsea really want to have all that volatility again, even
though he is a winning manager?
"[Abramovich] swings back and forward - You have [Carlo] Ancelotti, who was
a wonderful, calm, authoritative figure, then Hiddink, who is slightly less
authoritative, but similarly calm figure. And then you have Mourinho and
then you have Conte. There doesn't seem to be any middle ground."
If Conte, 46, does takes charge at Chelsea next season, he will need to hit
the ground running, with
The Times' Chief Football writer Henry
Winter saying that at the end of the day it will be results that determine
his future at the club.
"Results will dictate everything and he'll go with the tried and trusted and
the expensive [players] probably from Italy," said Winter.
Another option would be for Chelsea to try and persuade Hiddink to stay at
Stamford Bridge this summer.
Hiddink returned to coach the club for a second time in December following
the sacking of Mourinho, with the champions struggling near the foot of the
Premier League.
Since the experienced Dutchman's arrival in west London, though, Chelsea
have not lost in 10 league games, a run that has seen them move up to 11th
in the table.
Despite the impressive results Hiddink has achieved since arriving at
Chelsea - the 69-year-old also had a similar impact at the club after
replacing Luiz Felipe Scolari in February 2009 - the Blues are still set to
appoint Conte.
However, The
Daily Mirror's sports columnist Andy Dunn thinks that
while Conte has all the credentials to be a success at Chelsea next season,
owner Roman Abramovich would be best served keeping hold of Hiddink.
"He won three times on the spin with Juventus and is doing very well with
Italy," he told the
Sunday Supplement.
"I think on a basic level, you'll have to allow for readjustment. Even
though he is a proven, successful club manager, you would have a period of
readjustment from national coach back to club manager.
"It seems like now, and I agree, that a lot of people are saying wouldn't
the obvious solution be to try and persuade Hiddink to stay on for a little
while - but he's not going to stay on for a long, long term.
"But then again Abramovich doesn't look long term. He's just the latest
manager off the designer shopping rails to a certain extent."
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