The Italian has backed the Gunners boss to stay on after the end of the term and does not think it will be possible to stay at Stamford Bridge so long
Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has hailed Arsenal counterpart Arsene Wenger as one of the best managers in history and does not believe the Frenchman will be taking charge of his last Gunners game in Saturday’s FA Cup final.
The Blues are aiming to complete a Premier League and FA Cup double in the Wembley showpiece, having dominated all comers in the top flight this term.
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By contrast, Wenger has faced continued calls from disgruntled fans for him to end his nigh on 21-year tenure at Arsenal following another unsuccessful title bid and failing to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
However, Conte offered his support to Wenger and says too often in modern football people have short memories.
“I know very well the Arsenal history in the FA Cup. They won a lot of trophies in this competition, I have never won it,” Conte told a pre-match news conference.
“It is a good opportunity for me to lift it. I don’t trust that [Saturday] will be the last game for Arsene.
“He has done a good job and only this season they missed the Champions League. Sometimes you can undervalue this, they played 19 years in a row in this competition, it shows that his work is very good.
“When you stay for so long time in a great team, we must consider him one of the best managers in history.
“I repeat, we must pay great attention in modern football.”
This week, former Chelsea striker Gianluca Vialli stated he wants Conte to remain in charge at Stamford Bridge for 25 years.
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Conte, while reiterating his wish to stay at Chelsea for the foreseeable future, has doubts over the ability to stay at one club for such a long period in the present era, like Wenger has done.
Conte says it is the best solution for a coach to stay at a club for a long time and ‘build something important’. #CFC
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 26, 2017
“It would be great to do this, but in modern football it is difficult to stay in the same club,” he added.
“But if you stay for many years and improve your club it is the best solution to build something important.
“Modern football is dangerous and our job depends a lot on the result. The only way that I know to convince the club to stay for a long time is to work. For sure it is my hope.”
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