Antonio Conte slams speculation of his future and demands more respect.

Antonio Conte has hit back at his critics in the press who continue to speculate of his position as manager at Chelsea. He has demanded more respect for what he has achieved here so far. 

It really is a joke to be honest but I guess part and parcel of the mindset of the press these days. Ridiculous articles written by people that have never played the game at a good standard, the general public give them the readership they want so they feel as though their opinions are valued.

If Manchester City had not taken their game up to another level this season, the speculation would not exist with Chelsea winning eight out of the last ten games, drawing one and losing the other - it really is as simple as that.

The most recent ridiculous reports of the past week have stated that Chelsea have sounded out Luis Enrique the ex-Barcelona coach as to his availability at the end of the season and a report stating that Carlo Ancelotti is moving back to London in February to take over Chelsea if we lose our Champions League tie to Barcelona or at the end of the current season.

It really is disrespectful to Conte who has always spoken openly and honestly to the media, never shying away from any questions and someone who has always spoken of hard work.

Speaking after the victory over Southampton on Saturday, Antonio Conte took the opportunity to re-affirm his commitment to Chelsea and to state that he feels that the constant speculation of his future is showing a lack of respect. He said:

“Every day there is speculation about my future. It’s not right because I think I deserve a bit of respect for what I did last season, for what I am doing this season. To read every week: ‘Next season the club contacts this coach or this coach’ - for me this is not a problem. But it can create problems with the players because the players believe we could [drift] apart. 

I have another year on my contract, so in this moment my focus is total, to improve my players, to try to improve the team, to try to improve the club. If you understand a bit [about] football there is a moment you must have great patience, to know that someone is working very well. 

I think last season we did a fantastic job but this job is continuing this season. We are trying to change the average age of our team. I think for a club like Chelsea it is very important to start to do this, if you want to create a new base and face the future with confidence.”  - Source: The Telegraph.

Once again forthright from the manager and excellently put citing potential issues with his players to demonstrate that he wants to protect them from the crap that is being talked about on what seems to be a regular basis.

In my view there is one way almost immediate way to end all possible talk of Antonio Conte's position as manager of our football club, for Roman Abramovich and the Chelsea board to back him to spend big in January on the players that he wants to improve the squad to take the fight on all four-fronts in Europe, the Premier League and the domestic cup competitions. By doing that, it would be a massive statement of intent and public showing that they back their man in charge who has done a fantastic job here at Chelsea.

Despite this, there will still be speculation of his and the future of others at our football club because that is the nature of the beast. One thing is for sure, the manager has made it clear that he is here to stay with no intention of leaving anytime soon.

Will Antonio Conte now receive the respect that he rightly feels he deserves?