Paris Saint-Germain have opened talks with Antonio Conte’s representatives in an attempt to convince the Italian to leave Chelsea this summer.
The French club are certain to part company with Unai Emery at the end of the season when his contract expires, and Conte is one of four managers the PSG president, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, is considering as a replacement. José Mourinho, Diego Simeone and Massimiliano Allegri are the other three.
Mourinho is unlikely to leave Manchester United despite their exit from the Champions League at the hands of Sevilla and a somewhat strained relationship with the club’s fans. Simeone and Allegri will also be difficult to prise away from their respective clubs. Mauricio Pochettino has also been linked with the post but there has been no contact with the Tottenham manager yet.
So PSG have approached Conte first, knowing he is frustrated at Chelsea and possibly looking for a new challenge. The Italy job would be another option for the 48-year-old, should he part company with the London club in the summer, but it is thought that he would prefer to remain in club football. The Chelseaboard is set to discuss Conte’s future next month.
PSG would be able to offer Conte a small increase in salary and the initial talks were positive. PSG have not made a formal approach and are still considering their options. Conte earns £9.5m a season at Chelsea with PSG willing to offer their new manager £10m a year.
The French club hired Emery in 2016 after he had won an unprecedented third Europa League in a row with Sevilla. PSG had hoped that the Spaniard’s European nous would help them finally lift the Champions League. However, in Emery’s first year in charge they went out to Barcelona in the last 16 despite having won the home leg 4-0. This season they were again eliminated in the first knockout round, this time Real Madrid progressing 5-2 on aggregate.
On course to win this season’s Ligue 1 title, PSG are 17 points ahead of Monaco with seven matches remaining (Monaco have eight), but there has not been enough progress under the Spaniard on the European stage for the club to retain their faith in him.
PSG signed Neymar and Kylian Mbappé last summer (the latter on a loan deal that will become permanent this summer) but both European campaigns under Emery have been undermined by the manager’s decision-making and team selection, especially surrounding the team captain Thiago Silva.
Conte, meanwhile, has showed at Chelsea that he is capable of creating a team that can overcome the odds and win titles. Chelsea won the league in his first season at Stamford Bridge and although his second campaign has not been as successful there is recognition in Paris that he was not backed in the summer transfer window and that the squad has lacked the required depth and quality to compete in Europe and domestically.
The Italian’s relationship with the board has deteriorated this season with Conte complaining that he has not been able to sign the players he wanted. Chelsea are currently fifth, five points behind Tottenham, who they play next in the league.
The lack of investment in the Chelsea squad has never been far from Conte’s thoughts and before the recent game against Manchester City he said: “When you have a good manager and a lot of money to spend, probably you can have a successful season.
“I have great ambition but I don’t have money for Chelsea. The club knows very well what is my idea, what is my ambition. That is very clear. When you decide to work with this type of coach, you must understand that you take a coach with great ambition. Not a loser but a winner. And that ambition must always be shared.”
Chelsea have actually spent more money than PSG on players over the past two seasons – £351m to £316m – but when it comes to net spend the Parisians are leading the way, £178m to Chelsea’s £111m. Conte has sold players such as Diego Costa, Oscar and Nemanja Matic to fund player purchases but was still unable to sign the striker he wanted, Romelu Lukaku, last summer, having to settle for Álvaro Morata instead.
PSG would face competition from Italy to sign Conte this summer with the Italian FA’s vice-commissioner, Alessandro Costacurta, saying last month that the Chelsea manager is Italy’s top choice as national coach. “I haven’t chosen yet but I think Conte is the one who could do the best,” he said. “I’ll definitely talk with him in a couple of months.”
