Antonio Conte would savour winning Serie A with Inter more than he did in his first season at Juventus, at least according to one leading Italian journalist.
Inter are 11 points clear at the top of the table with just eight games left, following Sunday’s crucial 1-0 win at home to Cagliari.
Conte led Juventus to three consecutive league titles between 2012 and 2014, but Mario Sconcerti is confident this Scudetto would have a greater importance to him, because he has played a far more important role at Inter than he ever did in Turin – a role which goes beyond merely coaching the team.
“I’m convinced that for Conte, this title with Inter will mean more than his first Scudetto at Juventus,” Sconcerti wrote in a column for Calciomercato.com on Tuesday.
“This is because of the relative importance Conte has had within the two clubs.
“Every coach at Juventus in limited in how much he can control, there’s a strong presence from the ownership and they have a well consolidated way of doing things.
“Inter have always had a more family-like setup though, which has made them more creative but also led to anarchy at times.
“Conte has stopped that anarchy.
“He had the chance to do that because Inter didn’t have a prescribed model to follow like Juventus did, where they have had the same owners for a century.
“Inter felt the need for a new sense of clarity, perhaps a different level of seriousness.
“They needed a coach who removed all the vices and failings which have been built up among players and the club.
“Inter have listened to Conte and allowed him to become decisive in terms of every detail.
“The Scudetto is always the Scudetto, but Conte was only a coach at Juventus.
“At Inter, he’s been a total manager.”
Inter have become the first team in Serie A history to begin the second half of a league campaign with 11 straight wins, breaking the previous record (10) set by Arrigo Sacchi’s AC Milan in 1990.
They have kept nine clean sheets in their last 13 games and now boast the league’s joint-best defensive, alongside Juventus, as well as Serie A’s second-best attack (behind Atalanta).
Conte’s side will look to take another step towards the title when Inter visit Napoli on Sunday.