Antonio Conte has quickly indicated there will be no bad blood between him and Thomas Tuchel as he posted a cheeky social media message to his German counterpart post-match.
Both managers had been sent off after the final whistle in the tense, drama-packed 2-2 draw between Chelsea and Tottenham at Stamford Bridge on Sunday after Piere-Emile Hojbjerg slotted Spurs’ first goal.
Blues manager Tuchel was indignant that the goal stood and his counterpart immediately remonstrated and the heads of both managers connected briefly, instantly creating a melee between the two benches.
Tuchel and Conte then immediately shook hands and strode off in opposite directions at the final whistle, but with neither man refusing to let go of their frustrations, another clash ensued. As a result, both were subsequently sent off by referee Anthony Taylor.
In the aftermath of the match, the serial award-winning Spurs manager made light of their feud, with a saucy post on Instagram a few hours after the game.
What had trasnpired earlier, unknown to Conte, was that Tuchel had run down the touchline when Reece James had put Chelsea back in front, in a very typical mock Jose Mourinho celebratory manner.
Conte posted a clip of this on his social media with the caption: “Lucky I didn’t see you… making you trip over would have been well deserved.”
Both gaffers saw it fit to laugh off their two confrontations in the immediate aftermath, especially the full-time handshake that led to their red cards.
“I don’t have any problem, and I’m sure he will not have either,” said Tuchel.
“We both fought for our teams, and it happens.
“It’s so close here, such an intense match. Both dugouts are very, very close.”
Asked if Tuchel enjoyed the clash overall, Tuchel said: “Yes, and I think he enjoyed it as well, it was nothing bad.
“It’s Premier League football and the two managers got involved today, because both of us were fighting for our teams.
“Nobody got insulted, nobody got hurt; there was no fist fight or anything.
“It boils up but nothing bad. Today it was part of the game.”
It’s only common that tensions boil over in the heat of the moment, but there is no lasting bad blood. Spurs boss Conte echoed Tuchel’s words in doing his bit to downplay the spat.
“Honestly the referee showed me a red card but he didn’t understand the dynamic of what happened,” said Conte.
“It’s okay, I have to accept it but this is not a big problem.
“If there is a problem the problem is between me and the other coach.
“I think that what happened, we did enjoy.
“Next time I will pay more attention, just shake the hand and solve the problem. I’ll stay on my bench, he’ll stay on his bench.
“And no problem about this. It would be a pity if for this situation we miss the next game.”