Conte: I was trying to stir fans, not humiliate Jose
Antonio Conte says that he was simply trying to inspire a reaction from Chelsea fans with his own exuberant celebrations against Manchester United.
Conte was rather animated on the touchline as his Blues side sauntered to a comfortable 4-0 victory over United on Sunday. Treat yourself to 16 Conclusions from the game.
Opposing manager Jose Mourinho, returning to his former club for the first time as a Premier League manager, reportedly accused Conte of trying to ‘humiliate’ him with his celebrations.
However, the Italian has insisted that his motivation was purely to instigate a reaction from the home support.
“I think that a private conversation must remain private,” Conte after the game. “If someone discovers something, OK … but for me the private conversation remains private.
“I think that, today, it was right to call on our fans in a moment when I could only hear the supporters of Manchester United [singing] at 4-0. So I called the fans to give the players a great clap after this kind of performance. The players deserved that.
“We live with emotions. If you want to cut the emotions, we can stay at home and I will change jobs. It’s important for our fans to push in every moment of the game. When the players deserve it after this performance, it’s right to receive a great clap from the fans.”