
Antonio
Conte has told Jose Mourinho to stop talking about Chelsea after the
Manchester United boss suggested the Italian was "crying" about his injury
situation.
Mourinho, speaking after United's 1-0 win in Lisbon on Wednesday night, did
not name names but it was clear he was thinking of his former club Chelsea
and Conte, his successor as boss, when he talked of other managers who "cry
and cry and cry" about injuries.
And, when the subject was broached after Chelsea's 3-3 draw with Roma, Conte
retaliated.
"A lot of time Mourinho has to see what happens at Chelsea," Conte said.
"A lot of time, also last season. I think he has to think about his team and
stop... to look at himself, not the others."
Chelsea are already without N'Golo Kante, Victor Moses (both hamstring) and
Danny Drinkwater (calf).
And David Luiz suffered a calf injury against Roma which could make him
doubtful for Saturday's clash with Watford, when Chelsea will be seeking to
avoid three straight Premier League losses after defeats to Manchester City
and Crystal Palace.
Tiemoue Bakayoko, meanwhile, played on despite a groin problem, while Conte
played down concerns over captain Gary Cahill after the defender finished
the game with a heavily bandaged head, saying it was "nothing serious".
Chelsea had surrendered a two-goal lead, earned through strikes from David
Luiz and Eden Hazard, to trail 3-2 with 20 minutes remaining.
Edin Dzeko's quick-fire double, after fellow former Manchester City man
Aleksandar Kolarov's strike, looked like handing the visitors victory before
Hazard headed in an equaliser.
It meant Chelsea avoided what would have been the first three-match losing
streak under Conte's stewardship.
Conte, who deployed defender Luiz in midfield, admitted his tactics
contributed to Chelsea being second best.
When Luiz went off for Pedro, Chelsea reverted to their usual 3-4-3
formation.
"I didn't like the type of football we did for a lot of the game, but it's
right to take the responsibility for this," Conte said.
"I tried on one hand to protect my team, to become more solid and to move
our central defender into midfield. On the other hand we lost totally our
style of football.
"Sometimes you have to find the right solution to try to protect your team.
Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. But you know very well our
situation.
"It was good to draw. Roma deserved this result. I have to praise my
players, because my players showed me a big effort, a big commitment
tonight. Otherwise, we lose the game."