Chelsea manager Antonio Conte extends contract by two years

London : Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has signed a two-year extension to his contract with the reigning English Premier League (EPL) champions.

The former Italy coach helped the London club clinch the league title in his debut season with 93 points, seven points clear of Tottenham Hotspur who settled for second spot. He also helped the club achieve a record of 13 consecutive league victories.

"Antonio Conte has today signed a new two-year contract with Chelsea Football Club," the club confirmed in a statement on Tuesday.

Commenting after the contract extension, Conte said: "I am very happy to have signed a new contract with Chelsea. We worked extremely hard in our first year to achieve something amazing, which I am very proud of. Now we must work even harder to stay at the top." 

"The Chelsea fans have given me so much support since I arrived here one year ago and it is important we continue to succeed together," the former defender was quoted as saying by the official Chelsea website.

The deal was announced prior to the EPL champions pre-season tour to China and Singapore, where they will face city rivals Arsenal, German giants Bayern Munich and Italian club Inter Milan.