Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte. (Photo : Getty Images)
Former Italy national team head coach Antonio Conte had officially taken over the reins of English Premier League giants Chelsea and reports were out that he is ready to move on from Gli Azzurri's disappointing 2016 UEFA European Championship campaign.
Italy was defeated by tournament-favorite Germany, 1-1 (6-5) on penalties, in the quarterfinals of this summer's Euro competitions, which had allegedly disappointed the former Juventus boss as he had expected his squad to advance in no less than the final.
However, Caught Offside noted that the 46-year-old Italian bench tactician "clearly doesn't waste time feeling sorry for himself" as he expressed optimism about his future with the Stamford Bridge residents in an interview immediately after their loss.
"My future is to go back to working at club level, my future is Chelsea," Conte said, as reported by the Telegraph. "In a few days' time the new season will begin. To be honest I'd have liked not to have had a single day's holiday, that would have meant going forward to the final of the Euros and moving forward."
Conte then disclosed that the will rest for a week before going to England and start his work with the Blues on July 10.
"Now I will take seven days off, I will try and shift a bit of this disappointment at going out of the competition, before then taking the reins at Chelsea. I know it will be a significant difficult challenge but that is the sort of challenge I relish," he said.
However, the five-time Serie A champion player and three-time Serie A champion coach had some harsh words to describe his stint as the Italian national team coach, saying that he felt "undervalued and alone" during his time as manager.
He admitted that he would have liked to continue as Italy manager, but he was not able to do so because of a lot of undisclosed factors, until Chelsea offered him their head coaching job.
"If I'm honest I didn't see anyone alongside me, the press, the media, I had to go into battle. Conte against everyone," he said.
"I never felt supported by anyone, the president of Italian federation has always been alongside me, but the president can only go so far. My decision has been taken, it's a shame as this process is something we've done together, we've created a family, left a lasting mark, and I hope that can bear fruit," he added.
