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Arsenal are crying out for change - and Antonio Conte is the man to deliver it

Arsenal are crying out for change - and Antonio Conte is the man to deliver it

By Chelsea’s recent standards, Antonio Conte is reaching that point in his reign at Stamford Bridge where he will be considered ‘long-serving’.

The secret of Chelsea's success is hiring and sacking managers with rapid gunfire and the signals coming out of the club suggest they are readying themselves to pull the trigger again.

It would not surprise me  – I have felt Conte will go since he made public his displeasure with transfer policy at the start of the season. But I think it would be a huge mistake if Chelsea do part company, regardless of the calibre of his replacement.

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Not that they will be bothered. This is a club that sacked Jose Mourinho (twice) and Carlo Ancelotti shortly after title wins. Evidently Chelsea believe new coaches re-energise the club, a policy that has paid off spectacularly on several occasions. Coaches of the calibre of Diego Simeone and Juventus’ Massimiliano Allegri are already being strongly linked with the Chelsea job.

But we should not ignore there are also risks in regularly changing the coach, as we saw when Phil Scolari and Andre Villas-Boas failed.

For me, Conte remains the best man for Chelsea. His record since moving to Stamford Bridge is extraordinary. Despite Manchester City’s incredible run, Conte has won more Premier League points (142) and won more Premier League games (44 out of 61) than any manager since his appointment. Pep Guardiola will soon pass him, but he is not there yet.

Chelsea remain in both domestic cups, the last 16 of the Champions League and well-placed to finish runners-up in what would be a satisfactory title defence. It is too quickly forgotten Chelsea finished 10th before Conte took over. Certainly those Chelsea supporters booing the side after last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Leicester City must have wiped it from memory.

Had Conte finished in the top four in his first season Roman Abramovich would have considered it progress. No one could have expected Conte to deliver the title so soon.

Conte is an elite coach enriching the Premier League. Most clubs in the world would improve under him. We have seen his qualities, not just in his results, but in his belligerent approach off the park.

I can imagine no more suitable replacement for Arsene Wenger than Conte. It would be one of the most astute managerial appointments in Premier League history

No matter how controversial it was, to take on players of the reputation and importance of Diego Costa and David Luiz demonstrates the type of character he is. To be blunt about it, you can see he is a manager who will take no s---, whether it is a player, board member or – as is the case in the public spat with Mourinho – a rival manager.  In most circumstances a club would cherish having such a figurehead, not mull over letting him go.

If Conte’s situation is precarious - the Chelsea hierarchy ambivalent on his future and Conte increasingly frustrated by the structure of the club - there will be a long queue for his services. I could imagine Real Madrid considering Conte as a replacement for Zinedine Zidane, whose position looks vulnerable. The Italian national team would beg him to go back after their failure to qualify for the World Cup. There is talk of him returning to Italian football but having managed the national team and led Juventus to three Serie A titles in a row, would heading home at this stage of his career be so appealing? He has nothing more to prove in his own country.

There is one club in particular, much closer to his current home, I feel should be monitoring developments more than others; a club desperately in need of Conte’s persona, who would send a rocket through every department of their institution and instantly change perceptions.

That club is Arsenal.

I can imagine no more suitable replacement for Arsene Wenger than Conte. It would be one of the most astute managerial appointments in Premier League history.

Can you imagine Conte, disillusioned with his treatment at Chelsea, turning up at The Emirates?

Arsenal are still stuck in a cycle of mediocrity they have been unable to escape for several years. I will never lose respect for Wenger – his legacy in English football is preserved and he will always be considered one of the all-time greats – but I said last year his time was coming to an end and nothing has changed.

An opportunity was missed to make a choreographed exit at Wembley after winning the FA Cup last May, when Wenger’s last contract was expiring. That felt the right time to make a change rather than extend for another two years. Instead, the situation looks like it is deteriorating. The side selected against Bournemouth a week ago bore more resemblance to the League Cup teams Wenger picked 10 years ago. With Alexis Sanchez going, and Mesut Ozil’s future uncertain, Arsenal must rebuild, adding to the signing of Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Wenger has 18 months left. Can a manager in that position get to work constructing a side for the next generation?

Wenger has often said he will never break a contract. If there are many more performances like at Bournemouth it might not be his decision.

Arsenal seem torn between those who want to inject much needed freshness and those still clinging to the idea their greatest manager can recreate his former glory.

You can see some evidence of forward planning with the appointment of ex-Borussia Dortmund scout Sven Mislintat as Head of Recruitment. He must have advised the club to pursue Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but where does that leave Alexandre Lacazette, signed for £50 million last summer? I don’t see that as a partnership.

Darren Burgess, who I worked with at Liverpool, is also joining as High Performance Director so there are changes afoot.

But ultimate power still rests with Wenger.

No matter how loyal the Arsenal board, they have a duty to consider what happens when he goes. When outstanding candidates emerge you have to react. That is why I believe they should already be sounding out Conte’s camp. They will get another close look at him when the clubs meet in the Carabao Cup this week.

Conte is too good for Chelsea to let go. They should be desperately trying to keep him, not only because he will bring more success to the club, but to ensure he does not come back to haunt them when he returns with a rival.

If the Chelsea board cannot see that, Arsenal should do everything in their power to ensure it is a short tube ride to his next destination.