Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte inducted into the Italian football Hall of Fame under coach category
As quoted by the Italian Football Federation’s official website (h/t Daily Mail), Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte spoke of his delight at being inducted into the Italian football Hall of Fame as a coach.
The ex-Italy national team coach is currently in charge of Spurs, having taken over at the club late last year to replace Nuno Espirito Santo who was sacked after a string of disappointing results as the side slipped down the Premier League table.
On receiving the award, Conte said that he thinks he had luck and skill as a player and as a coach at club level that charted out an important path for him in his footballing career.
“I think that this award concerns my two careers, both as a player and as a coach. In both cases I had an important path, with the luck and skill I won everything as a footballer at club level.”
With this honour, the Tottenham boss becomes only the fifth former or present Italy manager to be inducted under the coach category. He joins an exclusive list of winners, joining Arrigo Sacchi, Giovanni Trapattoni, Marcello Lippi, and Roberto Mancini in the Hall of Fame.
“I missed something”
The Italian Football Federation said that Conte could have easily been placed in the player category for his success on the field, although he won the award in the coach category. As a player, he was a serial winner at Juventus, winning trophies in the league as well as in Europe.
The 52-year-old said that he regretted missing out on a title during his career with the Italian national team, coming close in the World Cup and Euro as a runner-up. As manager of the national side, he could only take them to the quarter-finals at Euro 2016.
“Unfortunately, I missed something with the national team, considering that I’ve been World Cup and Euro runner-up. I’m trying to follow the same winning path as a coach.”
Although widely regarded in Italy for his career as a key player for Juventus, the Italian has not let that stop him from achieving nearly the same success in his managerial career. Humble beginnings at Bari, winning the Serie B title, were soon followed up with trophies in the top-flight.
As head coach of Juventus, he won a hat-trick of titles with the club to set them on a winning streak in Serie A. He would go one step further last year, winning the league title with Inter Milan, and putting an end to the Bianconeri‘s successive Serie A triumphs that he had himself started in Turin.
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He has proven his success in England as well, winning the Premier League and FA Cup with Chelsea, before he landed up in north London to take charge of Tottenham this season. He has shown his talent across two leagues with some of the best teams in Europe and his induction is more than deserved.
Next season will mark his first full campaign with Spurs, and given his incredible record at previous clubs, the expectation is sky high about his ability to lead the Lilywhites to silverware and end their long-standing trophy drought.
