Conte on making suits, identity and mentality

UEFA.com: If you had to describe your philosophy, what is your favourite system to play?

Antonio Conte: I have always said a coach has to be like a good tailor. Depending on the players you have available, and depending on their qualities, you have to put together a nice suit. You try to bring out the characteristics and qualities of your different players. Then I add my idea of play and my tactics. But you have to discuss and work on two or three key areas such as what to do when you're not in possession.

UEFA.com: Your approach with Italy is a rather attacking style of football. Do you think that's right?

Conte: Italy didn't score a lot of goals during UEFA EURO 2016 qualification, but that was mainly because we missed chances, and also because we were playing against teams who sat back and played very defensively against us – who regarded losing 1-0 as a success. But our idea is to impose our game, to give our team an identity and play our football.

UEFA.com: How do you find the right balance between defensive solidity and attacking play?

Conte: Well, the important thing is the way you work. We work hard every time we get together and see the players. That's actually a small disadvantage compared with club football, as you only have a little time together. But before, during and after matches when we get together we try to analyse everything with the help of videos, and we talk and discuss tactics and try to give the team more options.

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UEFA.com: Is being a national team coach a more difficult task than working with a club?

Conte: I think so. At a club you have the chance to work and train with the players every day, with their minds and their mentality. Often you have to overcome difficulties in coaching – like when I came to Juventus we had to work more on tactics, on intensity, on desire, on determination, on enthusiasm, and on the tactical organisation of the team.

Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon played with and worked under Conte at Juventus ...

UEFA.com: Conte was your former team-mate and club coach; how is your relationship with him?

Gianluigi Buffon: Well, it's a relationship we've had since we played together. He has never been somebody who talks a lot, but he was an example on the pitch, he made his team mates follow him. Whenever he said something everybody would take notice.

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As a coach, he has got even better and improved as a leader, which is something a coach really needs to do. He has become even stronger. I have to say that for me, he really was a revelation. I'd never had him as a coach before, and when he started in 2011 he was really a great surprise – good for us and good for me.

Both these interviews took place in November.