Jamie Carragher reckons Antonio Conte’s departure from Chelsea will be ‘a big blow for the Premier League’ after he became the latest managerial casualty at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea announced this morning that Conte has finally been relieved of his duties after months of speculation surrounding his future.
While Chelsea had a disappointing campaign last season, finishing fifth in the Premier League, crucially outside of the Champions League places, former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher reckons he has been ‘brilliant’:
“Losing Conte is a big blow for the Premier League. I think he’s been a brilliant manager since he came in,” Carragher told Sky Sports.
“He changed to a three-at-the-back, his favoured system, the whole country seemed to change, even England went to three-at-the-back. So he has had a major impact on English football.
“To come in in your first season with a Premier League and then with an FA Cup in two years, thats some going, and considering the competition that we have in the Premier League now, so I salute Conte and I’m disappointed that he’s gone.”
Maurizio Sarri is expected to replace Conte in the coming days, but Carragher has warned that while Napoli may have played some excellent football under Sarri, it wont be an easy job for the 59-year-old Italian:
“It will be tough to replicate what Conte did,” he added.
“I know we always say that about new managers coming in to replace Chelsea managers, but with the competition now, where City are and the other teams looking to push on, [it will be difficult”
“Chelsea do seem to have a little bit of a problem with Hazard and Courtois at the moment, whether they are going to commit to the club or not, because they are possibly the two biggest players alongside Kante in midfield, that you need to stay at Chelsea if you want to be successful next season”
