Yahoo Sports Ordine: Conte’s comments show why Zlatan and Milan ‘never consulted him’
Journalist Franco Ordine has claimed that Antonio Conte showed during his first press conference with Napoli exactly why AC Milan did not push to hire him.
As soon as it became apparent that Stefano Pioli would not be continuing as the head coach, the newspapers and other media outlets wasted no time in linking Milan with both Conte and Thiago Motta, among other names.
Milan opted to hire Paulo Fonseca as their head coach and it must be said that he arrives amid a mixed reaction, with some believing that his CV and his failure to do anything of note at Roma mean he is not the kind of appointment an ambitious club should make.
However, others think he can build on the platform in place and that it is a hire that does not require a massive overhaul in the same way that Conte might. He uses a three-man defence, for example, and usually demands several big signings.
Ordine published his weekly column for MilanNews and it actually led with a consideration on Conte, whose comments in his Napoli unveiling presser have caused a bit of a stir.
“Inevitable to start with Antonio Conte. I have the clear impression that he has, indirectly, explained in a didactic way the reason why Ibra and Milan never consulted him,” he began.
“The coach from Lecce was clear and precise on the subject: ‘I am a manager, I want to have a say, maybe in some places where it isn’t right. I told ADL that I decide who stays and who leaves’. In short, he asked for and received carte blanche.
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“And putting the entire club in the hands of a coach is a luxury that Napoli can afford, returning from a disastrous season and its president accused of having ‘wrecked’ Napoli’s previous season. It seems to me at this point that even the most avid ‘widower’ of Antonio Conte can put his mind at rest: he wasn’t the right man, at least for this Milan.
“Yes, because as in Berlusconi’s past (Galliani was at the wheel and no one else could dictate the direction of travel other than president Silvio Berlusconi), the Rossoneri have never allowed a coach to be above the club.”
