Antonio Conte is on the verge of reuniting with Ivan Perisic at Tottenham Hotspur, but their rapport at Inter got off to a disastrous start. ‘I don’t think he can give the team what it needs.’
Multiple sources this evening including Sky Sport Italia, Sportitalia and the Daily Telegraph claim that Perisic is ready to turn down a new contract at San Siro and instead join Spurs as a free agent.
It’s suggested that Conte specifically asked for the Croatia international during today’s summit with director Fabio Paratici.
While Perisic did turn into a key figure in the 2020-21 Scudetto-winning campaign, he was on the verge of being sold because he did not fit into Conte’s tactics.
In fact, he was loaned to Bayern Munich for the 2019-20 season after Conte’s comments in July 2019, just a few weeks after taking over at the club.
“Perisic did try to do what I asked, but I have negative sensations and I don’t think he can give the team what it needs. We need to evaluate things carefully.
“I cannot complain about his effort and dedication, but there are roles to be respected. You cannot change the characteristics of a player, even if he tries.”
Perisic won the Bundesliga at Bayern and returned from the loan in 2020-21, going on to prove he could adapt from his traditional role on the left of a trident attack to cover the whole left flank in a 3-5-2 formation.
“We sent Perisic to Bayern because he was not prepared to do the defending work I had asked for. He returned with a different mentality,” said Conte in May 2021.
“I asked him the same things as last season, but he showed that he has extraordinary characteristics and needs to believe in himself more.
“The moment he started doing that, he started to play. He can be even more decisive.”
This season, Perisic scored 10 goals and provided nine assists in 49 competitive appearances for the Nerazzurri.
Still absolutely unfathomable that Conte preferred Dalbert initially and then Biraghi and Asamoah over Perisic. He has got to be one of the most versatile players out there. Only hypothetical, but we might have won the scudetto in 19/20 with Perisic in the team. An absolute hero he’s been at Inter
@harald … that’s precisely why Italian coaches are a joke.
MG Are you being serious pal? Italy has and continues to produce the best coaches in the world.