Antonio Conte has warned that Jose Mourinho is “an enemy” of Chelsea , just like any other manager, ahead of the Special One’s return to Stamford Bridge.
But the Italian conceded that his predecessor deserves warm treatment from Blues fans for all he achieved in on the Fulham Road.
“He becomes, like the players of Man United , an enemy… but only in the sporting aspect,” Conte said in his pre-match press conference at the club’s training ground in Cobham, Surrey.
“I think that he was an important manager for Chelsea, with the club and the players he wrote a part of the story.
“He won three championships here and was an important man to the club.
“I think he deserves a good reception because, I repeat, I wrote with the players/staff a part of the story of this club.”
As for Man United, this Sunday’s opponents, the Italian was keen to not just focus on the Old Trafford club’s stars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Conte’s former charge, Paul Pogba.
“We must pay attention to the whole team. United have a lot of great players.
“One of them for sure is Ibrahimovic, who is a fantastic player. There are many, many players.
“Man United played yesterday and I watched the game. I saw the players that will probably start the game on Sunday – four players.”
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