Chelsea interim-manager believes Italian will struggle
Guus Hiddink has had his say on Antonio Conte potentially taking over from him at Chelsea, and the Dutchman believes he may struggle.
Conte is heavily tipped to become the next permanent Chelsea boss after holding numerous talks with Roman Abramovich and other officials from Stamford Bridge.
The Italian has already agreed to step down from his role with the Italy national team after the European Championships, and he’s confirmed that he wants to return to club management.
However, Hiddink believes Conte may struggle at Chelsea due to the transition from international management to club management, despite him being Juventus head-coach previously.
Hiddink Warning
“There are a lot of differences between being a club and international manager,” Hiddink said.
“When you are in a club, you have the daily influence as a manager on the way of playing, on the behaviour on the pitch and outside the pitch. You have a lot of influence on a daily basis.
“When you’re a national team manager, now and then you play every three or four days, so that’s more difficult to get it as you wish.
“The only exception is when you are going into a tournament you have three weeks more or less to prepare as you do a club team. You have a bigger influence then.
“It’s always exciting going to a new county. I think it’s important to get into the culture of the country, but even more so the culture of the club.
“Also to learn as soon as possible the language, especially when it’s a difficult one, to go into your own football language.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt
