The pair had locked horns throughout the second half, but the feud reached a boiling point shortly after the final whistle after Harry Kane netted a last-minute equalizer for the visitors.
Things seemed relatively calm as both managers opted for the usual handshake, but both managers erupted when it emerged Tuchel wouldn’t let go of Conte’s hand after the Spurs boss failed to look at his counterpart in the eyes.
Staff and players from both sides rushed to separate the two emotional men in what was a fitting end to a fiery match played in scorching heat.
“It was hot because of the weather and hot between the benches and hot on the pitch and hot between the spectators – everything you want and hope for in a game like this at the start of the season,” said Tuchel told the BBC.
“There are no hard feelings. I feel like it was a fair tackle from him [Conte] and a fair tackle from me.
“We didn’t insult each other, we didn’t hit each other, we fought for our teams and, from my side, there are absolutely no hard feelings. I’m surprised we both got a red card for it.”
The pair had faced off earlier in the match after Conte angered Tuchel with his enthusiastic celebrations when Tottenham initially equalized to make it 1-1, with Pierre-Emile Højbjerg canceling out Kalidou Koulibaly’s opener.
However, Tuchel was not a shrunken violet after Reece James made it 2-1 at Chelsea, with the German running along the touchline after admitting the game “sucked me in”.
‘Lucky I didn’t see you’
After the game, however, Tuchel was more annoyed with Anthony Taylor’s refereeing performance and felt aggrieved by the decisions that led to Tottenham’s two goals.
The Chelsea boss was annoyed after striker Kai Havertz was apparently knocked down by Rodrigo Bentancur in the build-up to Tottenham’s first goal which also included a possible offside.
The situation only escalated when Tottenham defender Cristian Romero seemingly pulled full-back Marc Cucurella’s hair in the corner, leading to Kane’s 96th-minute equalizer.
The FA said they would investigate Tuchel’s post-match comments that criticized Taylor’s performance.
Ex-Chelsea manager Conte, meanwhile, would not comment on the stormy antics from the touchline, but he sent a tongue-in-cheek message on social media to his counterpart.
The handshake between the two managers has been shared – and remembered – widely on social media and all eyes will now be on the second leg in February next year.
The penalty for red cards will now be decided by an independent regulatory commission.
