Sky Sport Italia has aired the full interview with Tottenham coach Antonio Conte who admits being surprised by Spurs transfer activity in January adding that his ex club Inter will win the Serie A title this season.
Sky Sport Italia released a snippet of the conversation with the former midfielder on Wednesday (read it here) and aired the full interview today.
Conte discusses his first few months at the club and their ambitions for the future. Spurs have lost the last three Premier League games in a row, the last two after the signings of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur from Juventus in the January transfer window.
“Surely, I am happy with how we are working and I think that we are doing a lot. However, we also know that it takes time and patience. There are many young players at their first experience in the Premier League. Players who need to improve and gain experience and raise their level,” Conte said.
How does he transmit his personality and character to the team?
“I think that the first thing to transmit to a team is footballing knowledge. It’s crucial,” the ex-Inter and Juventus coach said.
“If you have this knowledge, you become stronger and you know how to face all situations in the best way, getting strength and personality.
“We are working on the team’s mentality every day to let every single player improve.”
Does he see any similarity between this season and his first campaign at Inter in 2019-20?
“It’s always difficult to make comparisons, but if I had to find something similar, it would be the lack of confidence that is inevitable when you start work at a club that hasn’t won in a long time,” Conte admitted.
“Sometimes self-confidence decreases in front of the first obstacle and negativity builds even more, conceding goals that are difficult to accept. That’s what’s happening with us in the last period. But it’s part of the process of a team that must improve a lot to be competitive. We are one of the many teams there in the middle, we need to work a lot, but it’s not a matter of concern for me.
“Surely, the situation is very different for me in terms of perspective and ambition, in terms of playing to win. We need to take into account that it’s a very different situation.”
“It’s never easy to replace someone in the middle of the season,” he continued.
“I had promised myself that I wouldn’t have done it again.
“I saw some situations from the outside that could be developed, but when you get into it, you realise something.
“What happened in January was not easy. We lost four players. Four important players for Tottenham, and we brought in only two. So, even just in terms of numbers, rather than reinforce the squad, we on paper weakened it.
“There are multiple reasons why certain choices were made. I would never expect to see four important players leave. This show how difficult it is.
“January is always very difficult. Bentancur and Kulusevski are ideal prospects for Tottenham because Tottenham are seeking young players they can develop and grow, not players who are ready. That is the issue.”
Can the Italian coach, therefore, bridge the gap between Spurs and the other Premier League teams without players who are fully-formed?
“That is the issue,” he replied. “This is the vision and the philosophy of the club. It is inevitable that if you want to grow quickly and if you want to be competitive more rapidly, you need players with a lot of experience because they also raise the experience level of the overall team.
“But I repeat, I have realised now that this is the vision of the club.”
Last but not least, Conte was asked his thoughts on Serie A. Who will win the Scudetto? Inter?
“Yes, yes, Inter will win it,” the former Nerazzurri coach concluded.
boy, does this guy get a lot of attention…. see his face plastered on this site usually multiple times… is it warranted?