The Italian who drove him out of his mind can't stand Chivu either. Arguing like at the tent door at the live match: “You can't wait, jesus”!

The Italian press writes today that between Cristian Chivu (45 years old) and Antonio Conte (56 years old) there is a war on the surface, after the Romanian coach stated dryly, at the end of last night's victory with Atalanta, score 1-0: “I don't care what Conte says“. On January 11, 2026, Inter and Napoli will meet at the “San Siro” in the 20th round of Serie A. After 17 matches, Inter is the leader with 36 points, two points above the title champions Napoli in 3rd place. Between them is AC Milan with 35 points.

Chivu and Conte formally embraced PHOTO Facebook

Their verbal duel began at the match in Parma, followed by criticism on television. The Italian press claims that the technicians do not get along.

Talks started in Cremona and continued in Bergamo, both before and after the match. Antonio Conte launched the first line: “As of today, Juventus, Inter and Milan are different from each other in terms of structure, secondary teams, wage bill and asset value“.

Milan president Marotta replied with a smile a few hours later: “Conte is a skilled communicator. His team is the favoriteFinally, after defeating Atalanta and regaining first place in the championship, Chivu had the last word: “I don't care what Conte says“.

“I'm coming to get you”!

The bone of contention in this sporting dispute has a precise date and place: May 18, 2025, Parma-Napoli match, Tardini Stadium, the penultimate leg of last season. The hosts were playing to avoid relegation with Chivu on the bench, and Napoli were gunning for the Scudetto. Rivals Inter were playing at San Siro against Lazio and were dreaming of the same title. The game in Parma ended with two red cards, one for Chivu and the other for Conte. All this after Napoli celebrated the equalizer scored by Lazio. Antonio targeted someone on the opposing bench. Maybe Antonio Gagliardi, former second-in-command to the current Inter coach and match analyst for the national team for ten years, including under Conte. “Can't wait, man! I'm coming to get you”, were the offensive words spoken by Antonio, but it is not known to whom.

The fight at the match Parma – Naples PHOTO Video capture

The series of scandals

The second episode took place in Naples at the end of October, following the hosts' 3-1 win over Inter. The visitors' president, Marotta, said after the match that the dubious penalty awarded to the contact between Di Lorenzo and Mkhitaryan “decided the match“. The Count answered in his own way: “I have never asked my presidents to act like fathers. And that denigrates the coach. I have always defended myself“.

Attacked with the cloak, Chivu chose not to respond even though he was being targeted. Neither then nor now:I don't cry, I will never come to complain, because I have dignity and a different approach. We waste too much energy. I don't care about reputation or showing how good I am, players just have to think about the game. I'm trying to change things, but for now I'm fighting alone“.

The last episode took place during that Napoli-Inter match. It was about a verbal altercation between Lautaro Martinez and Antonio Conte. The two had argued, and Antonio called him “damn phenomenon“. In the press conference, the coach teased him in his own way: “Lautaro is an excellent player, but from a human point of view, I didn't get to know him very well“.

Caught in the tableau scandal

Who is Antonio Conte, the one challenging Cristian Chivu? A former footballer imported to Juventus, he is an Italian champion as a coach with both Juventus and Inter. But before that, during the Siena period, he was found guilty in the blaturi scandal. In 2012, Conte was accused of not notifying the authorities about the fixed matches Novara-Siena (2-2) and Albinoleffe-Siena (1-0), from the 2010-2011 season, although he was aware of this. Conte and Chivu fought on the field at Euro 2000, in Italy – Romania 2-0, a match counting for the quarter-finals. It was the last match of Gică Hagi (60 years old) at the national team. Harassed by Conte, who marked him strictly, Hagi ranted and fouled him hard in one phase. He received a yellow card. Hagi's second yellow card, which got him eliminated, came after a phase in which he demanded a penalty.