Antonio Conte Says He Isn't Feeling the Pressure After Chelsea Win vs. Watford

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has dismissed talk he is under pressure at Stamford Bridge, insisting he does not fear being sacked by the club. 

Speaking after his team came back from 2-1 down to beat Watford 4-2 in the Premier League on Saturday, the Italian was asked if he has doubts about his job; a loss here would have been the Blues’ third in succession in English football’s top flight.

"I must be honest," he said per Liam Twomey of ESPN FC. "I feel a lot of pressure but not this type of pressure if the club decide to sack me. Honestly, I don't feel this pressure. I trust in my work. I try to keep everything for the club that I'm working for. I'm doing this for Chelsea."

As noted by Twomey, the 48-year-old also made it clear he is giving absolutely everything to the Chelsea cause:

In the end, the Blues emerged with a stirring victory from this contest with the Hornets, though for long spells they looked set to drop points.

A fine goal from Pedro put them in front early on, though Watford battled back brilliantly, with Abdoulaye Doucoure and Roberto Pereyra both netting either side of the interval to put the visitors 2-1 in front; Richarlison then missed two wonderful chances to give Watford a 3-1 lead.

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Conte called on Michy Batshuayi from the bench to turn the game back in the Blues’ favour, as he equalised. Cesar Azpilicueta then grabbed a winner with three minutes left before Batshuayi put some gloss on an even contest.

As noted by Henry Winter of The Times, it was evident just how much the win meant to the Chelsea boss and how much of an affinity he has with the supporters:

There have been reports that the Blues players are not happy with the practices being put in place by the former Juventus chief, though.

According to a report from Matt Hughes of The Times, some Chelsea stars believe there is too much "intensity" in Conte’s training sessions and "have concerns that the high workload is hampering their title defence and exacerbating the club’s injury problems."

In this encounter there appeared to be few signs of jadedness from the Premier League champions, as they came on strong in the final stages of the match. Per Twomey, Conte made a point of commenting on the impressive fitness his team showcased:

With stories like the one aforementioned and Conte admitting to Radio Anch'io lo sport (h/t Calciomercato) that he "won't stay abroad for too long" there has always been speculation about his position at Chelsea. However, it appears he’s still completely invested in the team and their title defence.

As things stand, Chelsea sit in fourth place in the Premier League table and already have nine points to make up on leaders Manchester City.