Conte snubbed by Manchester United, Juventus and AC Milan: was it the right decision, and does he need to lower his sights, or have they made a mistake?
Conte looks for a team to ‘save’, but faces plenty of rejections: Manchester United, Juventus, AC Milan and Italy have made, or are making, other choices.
What is Antonio Conte thinking right now? Manchester United have sacked Michael Carrick and are turning to Mauricio Pochettino. Juventus have backed Luciano Spalletti despite a poor start to the season, though they seem inclined to turn to Simone Inzaghi in the future. AC Milan have placed complete faith in Ruben Amorim through Gerry Cardinale, a decision vindicated by their climb up the league table. Italy are shining under Roberto Mancini and have even beaten France.
Since June and as recently as the past few weeks, the main jobs Conte has been linked with have gone, or are going, to someone else. "I dream of a club that has lost sight of its own history," Conte said in an interview with The Athletic in early October. In this era, that description fits Manchester United, Juventus, AC Milan and the Italian national team perfectly. But none of them, for different reasons, have wanted to put their faith in the coach from Salento, who ended his two-year spell at Napoli in June after winning a Serie A title (2024-25) and a Supercoppa Italiana (2025-26) with them.
Why clubs have said no to Conte
Conte demands a high salary (at least 8 million a season for a club, 4 million for Italy, where Mancini earns 2 million a year) and a say in the transfer market. Clubs must also weigh up ideas that may be clichés but have become accepted as facts in football: with Conte, a project can last at most two years. With Conte, communication (internal and external) can be problematic. With Conte, the squad have to give everything they have, at the risk of burning out.
But with Conte, you win
His record offers a counterargument, one football now treats as established truth: with Conte, you win the Serie A title within two years or, at worst, finish second (tell that to Man United, Juventus and AC Milan, who have been away from the top places for years). With Conte, you lay foundations other managers can use to keep winning (Allegri at Juventus, Inzaghi at Inter).
A step down?
Conte wants to return with the sort of project that whets his appetite for winning, such as bringing success back to a team that has forgotten its own history. But he is still without a job today. The teams he has been most closely linked with have gone, or are going, in another direction. So what next for the Lecce native born in 1969? A season of waiting? A sporting step down (but not a pay cut), such as a spell in Saudi Arabia or somewhere nearby? Or does he wait for one of the aforementioned teams to suffer further failures and finally decide to go for the 'safe' option?
