Chelsea feud with Antonio Conte deepens with ex-boss demanding £8.7m damages IN ADDITION to £11.3m pay-off
Conte was axed by the Blues 55 days after the end of last season - with a big fall-out following the Italian's departure
ANTONIO CONTE is suing Chelsea for £8.7m - on top of the £11m he still wants for the last year of his contract, according to reports.
The Italian, who won the Premier League and FA Cup during a two-year spell in charge at Stamford Bridge, was axed just 55 days after the end of last season.
The Italian publication claim that Conte is locked in a legal battle with the Blues, not only over the £11.3m he's owed for the final year of his contract - but also as much as £8.7m in damages.
Conte was rather bizarrely in charge for the first day of pre-season training, before Roman Abramovich finally pulled the trigger and landed Maurizio Sarri from Napoli.
Conte, 49, claims the circumstances regarding his dismissal have affected his chances of landing a big job since.
Chelsea are working hard to reach a settlement, but the newspaper further claim that Conte has missed two meetings with the club’s lawyers - and wants to drag the matter out as much as possible.
The Blues' counter argument in the saga is that Conte cost them money when he sent Diego Costa a text message saying he should find a new club.
This resulted in a major bust-up between the duo, with the now Atletico Madrid forward blaming him for his messy exit from Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea also claim that Conte was regularly late for his media duties and was absent from sponsorship commitments on occasions.
But quite incredibly they have also lodged a complaint that he parked his car in spaces not assigned to him at the club's Cobham training base.
Conte was in line to replace Julen Lopetegui at Real Madrid, but that was reportedly blocked over his request to bring in a large backroom team.
Therefore, the Italian is prepared to play the long game and fight the case until the end as a matter of honour.