It’s been far from a steady ship at Chelsea so far this season, with Antonio Conte experiencing a much more difficult campaign compared to last year.
The Italian tactician won the Premier League title in his first season in England, but the added stress of Champions League football to their schedule this year is seemingly having its toll on and off the pitch.
While he remains under pressure after consecutive losses to Manchester City and Crystal Palace in the league have left Chelsea nine points adrift of leaders City, as well as reported off-the-pitch problems causing tension as alluded to by The Telegraph, this latest claim isn’t going to help matters either.
According to The Sun, the Chelsea players have been texting former assistant Steve Holland as they miss the man who was crucial in building relationships between the squad and coach and was seen as a dependable figure in the set-up at Stamford Bridge.
A ‘poor relationship’ between the players and Conte is cited in the report, and so it remains to be seen how this impacts Chelsea moving forward as the former Juventus and Italy boss will surely not appreciate the move behind his back to speak to Holland, if the report is true.
It’s difficult to wholeheartedly go along with this report, and others, though, in terms of there being serious troubles brewing at Chelsea with regards to the squad’s relationship with Conte.
Based on the weekend win over Watford, a game in which the Blues battled back from 2-1 down to win 4-2, it’s pretty clear that the players are still playing for their coach and are desperate to get back on track.
As seen on numerous occasions previously at various clubs around Europe, it’s evident when players show a lack of desire and commitment to defend their manager’s corner, and so whether they’ve been texting Holland or not, a string of positive results will be good for everyone at Stamford Bridge in the coming weeks to continue to silence the suggestions that all is not well between Conte and his men.