Just before the crunch clash against Manchester United on Sunday, Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has fired shots at United manager Jose Mourinho for his tactics against Liverpool on Monday.
The Portuguese tactician was widely criticized for his cautious approach in the dull goalless stalemate at Anfield on Monday. On several occasions, the Red Devils were seen defending with six players at the back and failed to create lots of clear-cut chances against the Merseyside club.
Taking a dig at United’s performance against Liverpool, Conte said that he will never ask his team to play for a draw.
Conte said: “No. I think it’s right always to play for a win, and to start a game trying to win. I try and transfer these thoughts to my players always.
“If you play at home or away, it must be the same. You must start the game with only one target: to win. Not to play for a draw. I don’t like this. It’s not football.
“I think that it’s also it’s important to win in the right way. Because, sometimes, we’ve won in the past with other clubs, but I wasn’t satisfied with the performance.
The former Juventus manager said that the team should always concentrate on playing a good brand of football with the passion for winning.
“When you win it’s important to put in a good performance for our fans. To win is important, but it’s important also to play good football, to play with good intensity, to show always the will to win, the passion.”
The Italian tactician replaced Jose Mourinho as the Blues’ boss after a dismal 2015-16 season for the Stamford Bridge outfit in which they finished tenth. The club started brilliantly under Conte with three consecutive wins but a run of three winless games brought back the memories of last season. However, their campaign has returned back on track after winning their last two games.
Talking about the players’ mood, Conte said: “When there are these types of very bad seasons – because we finished 10th in the table – it’s normal that something remains in the players. In their minds. In their heads.”
“In this situation, the risk is to lose confidence. Also, it’s very difficult because you must change what happened last season, and that’s not easy.”