Conte, against his past: “I am part of the history of Juve”

On Saturday, Serie A offers a match of the highest level. Juventus, fourth in the table with 8 points, host Naples, second with 9, one behind leaders Udinese, leading a Antonio Conte who will experience a special day when he faces the team that he defended as a player and coach and that he led to win a total of eight scudettos,

As a player (1991-2004), Conte won Serie A five times with Juventus (1995, 1997, 1998, 2002, 20023), as well as the Champions League (1996), among other titles , while as a coach (2001-). 2014) achieved the first three (2012, 2013, 2014) of the nine consecutive ‘scudettos’ held by the ‘bianconeri’ until 2020.

The last precedent, no audience

The last time Conte traveled to Turin To face Juventus as a coach in May 2021 at the helm of Inter, who lost 3-2 on the penultimate matchday but were already proclaimed champions. So the match was played in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic and there were no fans at the Juventus Stadium due to restrictions. In the eight times he has faced Juve on the bench, he has won just once and lost six.

“My past is clear, 13 years at Juve as a player, I was captain for several years, almost everyone wins. I had the opportunity to coach for three years, starting with a series of nine scudettos,” Conte said today at the pre-match press conference.

“I am part of the history of Juve”

“I am part of Juve’s history for what I have done and what I have contributed,” Conte boasted. “It’s easier to stay with one club throughout your career… but as a coach it is impossible to decide your own career. “I coached Juve for three years, my career took me to different places.”

“Now I have the real pleasure of coaching a team like Napoli. For me“Being a person from the south, it’s a sense of pride and satisfaction.”said Conte, born in Lecce, before admitting that “returning to that stadium will be a very exciting experience, because the last time I came back was during the pandemic.”

His partner and disciple Thiago Motta

Juventus is also starting a phase with the help of Thiago Motta, who played with Conte in the Italian national team and has arrived in Turin after leading Bologna to fifth place last season, enabling them to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in the modest club’s history.

“Thiago Motta assumes a great legacy... “Training is not a frivolous thing, there is a demand for success, like at AC Milan or Inter,” said Conte.

“He was my player in the national team at the Euro Cup (in 2016). He made me smile, but also I’m a little sad because I’m getting old.”Conte, who coached the ‘azzurra’ between 2014 and 2016, added with a laugh “He did very well in Bologna and that’s why I wish him the best from a human point of view, but not in the games against us.”