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Antonio Conte insists war of words with Jose Mourinho is purely personal and adds 'I won't forget this'
Antonio Conte pointed to his face as he asked, “Do I have the look of a person who regrets?” Chelsea’s head coach signed off with the warning of “I won’t forget this”, as he addressed his war of words with Jose Mourinho.
The row between Conte and Mourinho completely overshadowed Chelsea’s FA Cup third-round draw with Norwich City and continued to dominate the build-up to the first leg of Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal on Wednesday night.
Mostly overlooked in the fallout of the row with Mourinho last week was the dig that Conte aimed at Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal manager, over the Frenchman’s claim that Eden Hazard dived against his team in the Premier League.
But, having labelled Wenger an “old coach” who blames referees, Conte insisted he holds no grudge against the 68-year-old, whereas his feud with Mourinho is purely personal. Asked whether he regretted anything he said about Manchester United manager Mourinho or the nature of the row, Conte said: “Do I have the look of a person who regrets? I don’t think so. We both said these things and we’ll see what happens in the future.”
Asked whether the public fallout could damage the reputations of Chelsea and United, Conte added: “This is not a problem for the clubs. It’s a problem between me and him. I stop.”
The row blew up last Friday, when Conte responded to Mourinho speaking about “clowns” on the touchline by accusing the Portuguese of losing his mind.
Mourinho hit back by referencing a match-fixing scandal during Conte’s time at Juventus – the Italian was cleared of any wrongdoing. It provoked Conte to describe the former Chelsea manager as a “little man” and “fake”.
The Football Association has said it will not step into the row, while Conte has made it clear there is no point in the League Managers’ Association trying to mediate.
“I think it’s not important, [to involve] the association,” said Conte. “He said serious words, using serious words and I won’t forget this.” Ahead of going up against Wenger for the second time in a week, Conte was given the opportunity to clarify how deep his dissatisfaction with the Arsenal manager ran.
“I made a comment to Arsene because he mentioned my player, otherwise I have respect for what every coach thinks,” said Conte. “I made a comment after he mentioned Hazard. But every coach has their own opinion and we must respect it if you don’t offend anyone.”
Wenger used to be Mourinho’s most bitter enemy. When it was put to Conte that he and his opponent on Wednesday share a dislike of the Portuguese, he said: “I don’t hate anyone.” At the weekend, Conte claimed he is ready to meet Mourinho “face to face” in a room when Chelsea next play United at Old Trafford on Feb 25.
But that meeting will be put back if Chelsea see off Arsenal over two legs and reach the final of the Carabao Cup, which is scheduled to take place on the same date.
Conte has made it clear that his priority remains securing a top-four place in the Premier League, but will signal his desire to add another winners’ medal to last season’s title success by naming a strong team to face Arsenal.
Hazard is available again, while goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and N’Golo Kante could all start.
Conte said: “I think not only for me, but for the club, for the players, it will be very important to finish in the top four because it means in the next season you will play again in the Champions League and, as you know very well, the Champions League is the best tournament that a big club can play.
“But at the same time, if there is the possibility to win a trophy in your season, I think you must try to do this. You must try to do your best in each competition. In this case, we are in the semi-final and I think our task is to try to reach the final. And then to try to win this trophy.
“Last season we won the league. Last season, we played in the final of the FA Cup and then in the Community Shield and, for me, it was a great, big experience. To play another final in this season? Yes, I’d like to play another final. For sure, my players will try to do everything to reach this target.”
Chelsea are still in the market for signings this month, with Conte confirming he had wanted to take Virgil van Dijk to Stamford Bridge.
“For sure, he was our target but, as you know, this is football,” said Conte. “We can have a lot of targets, but you must be able to reach those targets. The transfer market is not simple for any club.”