After Conte's beard gets the chop, we revealed football's most oddly superstitious stars
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte is risking the wrath of the footballing gods ahead of the Blues game with Liverpool this weekend.
The Italian has controversially ditched his beard after previously putting the Premier League champion’s great run down to his tatty chin.
The 48-year-old’s young daughter has stamped her feet and demanded daddy gets the razor out and returns to his clean-shaven self.
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It could be an awkward family Sunday dinner if the Blues come home defeated from Merseyside.
But how does Conte’s facial hair compare to other weird and wonderful football superstitions from around the world?
We look at the other rituals that have made the game great – some worked, and some didn’t!
Paul Ince
Wherever he played, the former England midfield made sure he was the last player to walk out onto the pitch – and would only ever put his shirt on as he jogged out of the tunnel.
Gary Lineker
If this was your run-of-the-mill striker coming up with some odd way of drawing attention to himself, you’d quickly ignore it. But Lineker refused to partake in shooting practice before a game through “fear of wasting” the goals.
Malvin Kamara
Former Cardiff City and Huddersfield player Kamara wasn’t one for the PlayStation or a game of cards the night before a match. Instead, he would watch 1971 hit film Charlie and The Chocolate Factory before every game. “It calmed my nerves” he claimed.
Johan Cruyff
Holland’s greatest ever player had two things he just had to do before a game. First, he would religiously slap his Ajax team-mate Gert Bals in the stomach. Then, when on the pitch, he would always spit his chewing gum into the opponent’s half. The one time he didn’t? Ajax lost 4-1.
David James
The goalkeeper’s pre-match behaviour was so odd it can only be properly described by the man himself. “It was made up of things like going into the urinals, waiting until they were empty and spitting on the wall.” Nice.
Gabor Kiraly
Madcap keepers are commonplace, and the fashion police had a warrant out for the former Crystal Palace stopper. His awful grey tracksuit bottoms were “lucky” he claimed. Some demanded a Wimbledon-style attire code as he refused to ditch the joggers.
Tommy Elphick
The former Brighton and Bournemouth centre-back make a name for himself thanks to his pre kick-off ritual as well as great performances. The Aston Villa man spends 30 seconds hanging onto the goalpost for good luck just before games.
