London, July 19 (IANS): Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has signed a two-year extension to his contract with the reigning English Premier League (EPL) champions.
The former Italy coach helped the London club clinch the league title in his debut season with 93 points, seven points clear of Tottenham Hotspur who settled for second spot. He also helped the club achieve a record of 13 consecutive league victories.
“Antonio Conte has today signed a new two-year contract with Chelsea Football Club,” the club confirmed in a statement on Tuesday. Commenting after the contract extension, Conte said: “I am very happy to have signed a new contract with Chelsea. We worked extremely hard in our first year to achieve something amazing, which I am very proud of. Now we must work even harder to stay at the top.”
“The Chelsea fans have given me so much support since I arrived here one year ago and it is important we continue to succeed together,” the former defender was quoted as saying by the official Chelsea website.
The deal was announced prior to the EPL champions pre-season tour to China and Singapore, where they will face city rivals Arsenal, German giants Bayern Munich and Italian club Inter Milan.
Liverpool sells Lucas Leiva to Italy’s Lazio
English football giants Liverpool have announced that Brazilian international Lucas Leiva was headed to Italian club Lazio on a permanent transfer after a 10-year stint at Anfield.
The English Premier League (EPL) club said Lucas passed the medical tests for Lazio on Tuesday, reports Efe.
“Liverpool as a club and Liverpool as a city is a unique place. I think it’s different from everywhere,” the 30-year-old Lucas said in comments posted on his former team’s Web site.
“The fans are a big part of the club, probably the most important part of the club, and without them Liverpool wouldn’t be the same club I would say,” he added.
“Thank you for all the support, especially in difficult times, that’s when it means a lot. We all know that Liverpool fans are really special and they were always here for me,” Leiva said.
News of the deal for Leiva comes days after Lazio sold Argentina’s Lucas Biglia to AC Milan.
