Antonio Conte fires back at Jose Mourinho, says he was trying to lift the crowd
Jose Mourinho was NOT happy at Antonio Conte's celebrations after Chelsea dragged Manchester United up and down the Stamford Bridge pitch.
The Portuguese manager complained that Conte shouldn't have been as jubilant as he was at 4-0, and that those sorts of histrionics should be saved for a close match.
Seems Antonio Conte feels differently.
“I was a football player, so I know how to behave on the pitch,” Conte shot back. “There were United fans who kept singing, while ours were in silence after a great performance from my team. I wanted to call the crowd to applaud the players, which seems normal enough to me.
“I have great respect for everyone. Nothing happened with Jose, especially as my behavior seemed normal. I didn’t make fun of or humiliate anyone, as I always demand respect. Today, I think it is important to talk about the game and I say my players deserved this type of performance.”
Conte immediately came off the top rope at Mourinho, who never played at a professional level, and basically hit him with the reverse "act like you've been there before" card that Jose tried to play.
Conte has been on the winning side of many important games. Both as a player, and a manager, and he also knows the importance of keeping the crowd motivated, engaged, and behind his team. It hasn't been easy for Chelsea this year. They're just now starting to figure it out, and every single win is important, whether it's a not-so-glamorous victory over Hull, or a huge marquee match-up over Manchester United in front of the home fans.
Conte is a naturally exuberant manager, and one of his biggest strengths is the way he motivates his players and brings them together as a unit. He forges strong bonds in his dressing room, and part of how he does it is by being extremely tuned into the sentiment surrounding his club, his fans, and his players. As such, it makes sense that he'd try to rev up the crowd after seeing his team do exactly what he asked them to. He wanted them behind them at a very important time in the season.
Jose Mourinho's a sore loser, and we know this. And that's fine. No one likes to lose, and it's actually more fun as neutrals to watch big-time bosses act like regular, petty humans. But this time? It was probably better to keep his mouth shut, bud. Especially considering his long history of "disrespectful" behavior on the sideline.
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