The great paradox of Antonio Conte’s managerial career is that he is unquestionably an elite manager despite consistently struggling to make an impact in European football’s elite competition.
Speaking at Carrow Road on the final day of the 2021-22 Premier League season, Conte insisted that steering success-starved Tottenham to fourth place in the table and consequently securing a return to the Champions League was an achievement comparable to winning a trophy.
Conte of course knows a thing or two about that particular art, adding 10 winner’s medals to an already sizeable collection since moving into management. Among his crowning achievements are winning Juventus’ first Serie A title in the post-Calciopoli era, taking Chelsea from 10th to champions in his first season in charge, and leading Inter Milan to a first Scudetto in 11 years.
Impressive as his accomplishments undoubtedly are, all 10 of Conte’s managerial successes have come in domestic competitions. The closest he has come to claiming continental honours have been in the Europa rather than the Champions League. And his record in the latter is head-scratchingly poor for a manager of his calibre.
During his spells in charge of Juventus, Chelsea and Inter, Conte presided over five separate Champions League campaigns: in three of them, his team was eliminated at the group stage; on the two occasions in which a Conte-managed side reached the knockouts they came unstuck in the last 16 (Chelsea in 2017-18) or the quarter-final (Juventus in 2012-13).
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Furthermore, Conte’s victories in the competition have generally come against teams that his own side would have largely expected to beat. Of his dozen successes, four came against Qarabag and Celtic (two apiece), while only three were against clubs that have consistently reached the knockout stages of the competition – Chelsea (during his time as Juventus boss), Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
In contrast, Conte teams have frequently fallen short against Europe’s best. Juventus were beaten home and away by Bayern Munich in the 2013-14 quarter-final and lost against Real Madrid in the group stage the following year; Chelsea lost 4-1 on aggregate to Barcelona in 2017-18; Inter lost both games against Barcelona in 2019-20 and then to Real Madrid twice the following season.
Antonio Conte’s Champions League record
Overall record:
- Games: 36
- Wins: 12
- Draws: 13
- Defeats: 11
Season record:
- 2012-13: Quarter-final (Juventus)
- 2013-14: Group stage (Juventus)
- 2017-18: Last 16 (Chelsea)
- 2019-20: Group stage (Inter)
- 2020-21: Group stage (Inter)
Victories against:
- Celtic (x2), Qarabag (x2), Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Borussia Monchengladbach, Chelsea, Copenhagen, Nordsjaelland, Shakhtar Donetsk, Slavia Prague
Considering Conte has consistently out-manoeuvred the sharpest tactical minds in the game in domestic leagues, his inability to replicate that in Europe is mystifying.
One of the theories often put forward is that the weekend-midweek slog of European football grates with his desire to meticulously map out each and every game on the training ground and in the team meeting room.
Some of Conte’s finest managerial accomplishments have come when his team have been exclusively able to concentrate on the league. He led Juventus to an unbeaten Serie A season in 2011-12 when they were not in Europe, won a then-record 30 Premier League games with Chelsea in 2016-17 and even led Spurs to fourth last season after they had been eliminated from the Conference League.
An explanation that Conte himself has put forward is that his teams are usually less settled than other major sides. Conte’s longest managerial stint was the three years he spent at Juventus. “So far, I have always taken part with new creations while the [other] teams are solid realities,” he mused after Inter were held by Slavia Prague 2019. Another factor, he has argued, is that he hasn’t had the depth and quality of squad to compete on two fronts.
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Given Conte’s record in the competition, it will be fascinating to see whether they live up to their billing. “My players are capable of being competitive enough to win something, even [in] Europe,” Conte said after the draw had been made.
With the absence of Europe’s biggest and best clubs from their group and after spending £160m to beef up the squad during pre-season, Conte won’t have too many excuses if his team fails to reach the knockout stages this time around.
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