There is a story from Andrea Pirlo’s autobiography that casts a little light on what Antonio Conte is like when he sees something that displeases him.

Conte had just been appointed as manager of Juventus, and on his first day of training, introduced himself in astonishing fashion.

“It’s time we stopped being c--p,” Conte fumed. “Every single person here has performed badly over the last couple of seasons. Turning around this ship is not a polite request. It’s an order, a moral obligation.”

It is not known whether Conte treated the Chelsea squad to a similar tongue-lashing last summer. But given the transformation that followed, you hesitate to rule it out. Conte inherited an underperforming squad from Jose Mourinho and has turned it into one of the most ruthless winning machines in Premier League history. As the pair prepare to meet again at Old Trafford on Sunday, this is how Conte ripped up the Mourinho blueprint in just nine months.

1) Tactics and training

Conte did not originally intend to switch Chelsea to the 3-4-3 system that now looks like a title-winning masterstroke. He began pre-season in the same 4-2-4 shape that he used to good effect at Bari and Siena. But a poor start to the season, recurring defensive issues and a lack of faith in Michy Batshuayi as a second striker forced him into change.