
Antonio
Conte says Chelsea can learn from defeat after they lost their first
pre-season friendly to Rapid Vienna on Saturday.
The Blues went down 2-0 against Rapid, with goals from Joelinton and
substitute Tomi sealing a straightforward win for the hosts.
Chelsea were without a number of star names in Austria, where Rapid were
playing in their new stadium for the first time, but the likes of John
Terry, Willian and Diego Costa did take part in the game.
However, Conte said his players will learn lessons from the match and be
ready to compete for the Premier League title in the coming season.
"I think the game was very important because we can learn a lot from it.
It's important to switch our minds to change. The past is not important, we
must build through the work of our present and future," Conte said.
"We are very happy to open the new stadium but I'm unhappy with the loss. I
want to see our fans happy.
"We'll work very hard because we want to come back and compete for the title
until the end of the season. I know there is a lot of work to do but we are
ready."
Conte did admit that he was not surprised to see Chelsea struggle in their
first pre-season friendly after a rigorous training schedule.
The 46-year-old took training with the Stamford Bridge side for the first
time on Wednesday and pre-season preparations have already been demanding
ahead of the new campaign.
"This is the first game for us but I knew it would be very difficult after
three days of double training," Conte said.
"They were very hard sessions, not to enjoy, all about the physical and
tactical aspect. I think it was a bit normal to meet these difficulties in
the game, but I don't like to lose and it's the same for my players."