May 19th is marked in the diary, it could, quite possibly, be Antonio Conte’s last game in charge of Chelsea.
But, courtesy of the 2-0 FA Cup semi-final win, at Wembley, against Southampton, it gives the Italian the chance to leave on a high.
For the second consecutive year, Conte has steered the club to the FA Cup Final, last year he watched on as his side were beaten by Arsenal, this year he’ll be looking to go one better and guide Chelsea to victory, against Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.
Following the victory, against Southampton, Mourinho spoke to the BBC discussing the game and his hopes for the remainder of the season, remarking,
“We are not in the position to prioritise the FA Cup or fourth, if we want to continue to have hope of getting into the Champions League we have to take three points in these four games. Now we must be focused on the league.
“We deserved to win the game and reach a second cup final in a row. To reach final we are very pleased, especially for our fans, they are the first to deserve this satisfaction.
“Now our target is to try and put a bit of pressure on the teams in front of us in the Premier League and get a place in the Champions League and finish as best as possible.
“It’s important for us to reach a final in this competition especially because we are struggling a lot in the league.
“In the Carabao Cup we reached the semi-final and in the league we dropped a lot of points and probably next season we will play in the Europa League and not the Champions League.”
Conte has never presided over a team that has won a domestic cup final, here’s hoping May 19 will be the first time.