As Chelsea head towards the Premier League title, manager Antonio Conte is at last beginning to feel at home in London — thanks to his local Italian restaurants.

The 47-year-old, who is on the brink of winning the league in his first season, has admitted finding life “hard” in the capital, away from his wife Elisabetta and nine-year-old daughter Vittoria, who have stayed in Turin.

But home comforts at restaurants in the Chelsea Harbour area, where the former Italy midfielder lives, have helped him to settle in.

Aaron Rutigliano, who runs Gola near Stamford Bridge, said Conte was a fan of the Puglian food he serves as it reminds him of his hometown Lecce.

He added: “He comes back so often. He is a nice, simple relaxed guy. He comes in by himself to eat dinner or sometimes just to watch football, or sometimes with a friend or his lovely wife and daughter.

“He’s incredible with the customers, very polite. He has hundreds of people asking him for a picture and he never says no. Never, ever. Jose Mourinho wouldn’t do that.

“But Antonio Conte is always standing up and smiling in every picture.”

Mr Rutigliano said the Blues manager now seemed more settled.

“At the beginning it was not easy for him, he had never worked outside of Italy before and London is a huge city. He needed to discover the city and the people, so I told him ‘it takes eight months to fall in love with London’.

“It’s not easy for anyone to come here but his mood has improved. I think now he is enjoying living in London.”

Mr Rutigliano said Conte had also asked him to check what his players eat at Gola. “Many times I have to send him a picture of the player and what they are eating. He is very hands-on but the players all love him,” he said.

Claudio Bruno is manager of another Conte favourite, pizza restaurant Santa Maria in Fulham. He said: “He came here with his wife and daughter just a week after he moved here. He loved our tiramisu. I said it was homemade and he begged me for the recipe. We reminded him of his home. He was fantastic and very friendly.”

The manager is also a familiar face at his local Tesco Express — which he cleared out of prosecco as a Christmas gift for his backroom staff.

The Blues will be crowned champions on Friday night if they beat West Brom at The Hawthorns.

There could be more good news soon for Conte, with Elisabetta, 41, and Vittoria set to join him permanently in London this summer.

They are believed to have remained in Italy because of Vittoria’s schooling and for her mother to finish a university course, although they have flown to the capital for a few days every week.

Conte previously told reporters: “The only problem for me this season was the family missing me. My family stayed in Italy. I’m working, and working for the future to try and bring them here and to stay together. Family is missing me, this is the truth. I hope they come here and stay here also because I need them.”

The Italian blew kisses to his wife and daughter in the crowd when Chelsea beat Middlesbrough at Stamford Bridge on Monday.

He first met his wife, whose family lived near his, when he was 21. They married in 2013, soon after Conte, a former altar boy, had an audience with the Pope at the Vatican.@benm_b