Antonio Conte says he is looking forward to returning to Stamford Bridge as Tottenham face Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-finals this week.
Conte will face his former side as Spurs meet Chelsea in the first leg of their last-four encounter on Wednesday evening, with the Italian having spent two seasons in charge of the west Londoners during his previous spell in English football.
The 52-year-old won the Premier League title in his first season and added the FA Cup the following campaign, though it was not enough to keep his job with Conte sacked in 2018.
Despite the manner of his exit, Conte says he is looking forward to returning to Chelsea and says he has nothing to prove against his former side.
“I spent two seasons where I created a good relationship with players, staff, people who work at Chelsea,” Conte said. “We did a really good job and I think in my position I mustn’t prove anything to anyone.
“I’m a manager that has experience and continues to have experience and do important jobs at other teams. It’ll be a pleasure for me to come back to Stamford Bridge.”
Conte opened up on the differences between Chelsea and Tottenham at present, admitting the former are ‘more ready’ to challenge for major trophies than his current side.
He admits Spurs have ‘space for improvement’, however, and hopes his side can continue their development as the north Londoners look to reach the Carabao Cup final.
“At this moment, Chelsea is more ready than us to win,” he said. “They won the Champions League last season.
“We have a lot of space for improvement, to be a team with aspirations to win. To use the verb ‘to win’ is more simple than winning because to win you have to build something important, be solid, have an important squad. Then you’re ready to win. Otherwise you have to hope.”
