The Italian has been the boss at Stamford Bridge for the past 2 seasons, leading the Blues to an emphatic Premier League title triumph in his first season in English football. His final game came was an FA Cup final victory over Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United manager.
There were troughs amidst Conte’s peaks as Chelsea boss though, including a spat with the aforementioned Old Trafford gaffer and a perception of him having had a poor relationship with some of his own players.
Conte’s departure is hardly a surprise, but it could have wider ramifications for some members of the squad he built.
Conte’s introduction of a wing-back system at Stamford Bridge was revolutionary for the club and kickstarted their procession to the league crown. Conte’s tactical developments repopularized the wing-back system in this country and was equally significant in the career of Marcos Alonso.
The Spaniard was vital to Conte’s title winning team and was a regular fixture in the side throughout last season as well.
Whoever replaces the Italian though, especially if it is Maurizio Sarri as expected (as per the Guardian), then the wing-back formation is likely to be dispensed with. Sarri never used wing-backs at Napoli and it is probably the case that any new boss will wish to make their own mark on this team.
That could spell the end of regular football for not only Alonso at Chelsea, but also fellow wing-backs Victor Moses and Davide Zappacosta as well.
Barkley hasn’t managed a huge amount of minutes at Stamford Bridge since his arrival in January, and was a fairly underwhelming addition to the Blues squad even at the time.
As a signing of Conte’s, without much goodwill from the fans and a spotty fitness record, Barkley could really struggle to stake his claim for inclusion under the new regime. At a crossroads in his career despite only recently joining one of the biggest clubs in the world, it’s going to be interesting to see what becomes of a man once compared to Michael Ballack.
