Hiring Antonio Conte was a mistake, there I have said it and I hate the fact that it has to be said. I know this is an unpopular opinion and expect a backlash but I am certain in my belief he is the wrong choice.
Of course, it is far too early to judge Conte, he has had just the winter transfer window and inherited an unbalanced squad but it is still a squad that is good enough to beat teams like Southampton and Wolves in our own backyard.
I do blame Conte for slowly but surely destroying the confidence within the squad, I do blame him for the players he has selected and the tactics he has deployed, I do blame Conte for the way he has put the team down so much every time a result does not go his way.
To come out and call Tottenham a mid-table team is not good management and his defeatist attitude has clearly seeped through to the team.
Anyone looking at his body language this season will surely have noticed how subdued he was before a ball was even kicked against Chelsea, there was none of the usual antics on the touchline that we have seen in games before and since, wonder why that.
His treatment of Ryan Sessegnon was appalling and his comments about other players beggars belief.
He talks about a winning mentality but complains all the time about the team not being good enough. Hardly a winning mentality that.
He must have known in advance what he was letting himself in for and if he did not then that is on him. It is obvious to everyone that watches Tottenham that the defence is crying out for reinforcements and yet his treatment of Joe Rodon, his loyalty to Davinson Sanchez, is all on him and not the players.
His insistence of trying to fit square pegs into round holes tactically is all on him, His insistence on trying to replicate Chelsea and Inter knowing he does not have the players for that system, is on him.
Conte is a good manager, no one is saying otherwise but just because a manager does well with one club does not mean he can do it everywhere he goes. Remember Juventus were already declining and Inter rising when he took charge in Milan, remember that he inherited a billion pound squad at Chelsea and had a team without Champions League football to contend with, circumstances are very different at Tottenham.
Spurs are a team that does not flourish under elite managers, they do far better under managers that have a point to prove, a name to make and who play a certain style, a Mauricio Pochettino or even a Harry Redknapp.
Not all clubs are the same, some require that top quality manager with a stick to beat them with, other clubs require a more nurturing progressive manager and Spurs definitely fit the latter.
I hope that Conte comes good but I doubt very much he will, he is on the verge of registering the worst losing run of any Tottenham manager in the Premier League era, think about that for a minute.
Tottenham needs a young hungry manager that has his ego in check and that is not Conte, a Graham Potter or Erik ten Hag would have been far better suited to Spurs and not a Conte or Mourinho.
Conte and Tottenham are destined to end in a bitter parting, again, I hope I am very wrong, but I suspect I am not and that we will feel a lot of pain this season before Conte throws his dummy out of the pram, quits and sues for a large amount of money.
Hopefully, this is the last time we employ a former Chelsea manager who has grown their reputation on the back of unlimited funding and a squad already built for success.
Was hiring Antonio Conte a mistake? Let us know in the comments below.
I think you are talking utter rubbish! Tottenhams issues have been prevalent for a considerable time now beginning arguably whilst Spurs were still under Pochettino, and becoming increasingly more evident following his questionable departure. Many mistakes have been made since, but none of which Conte is directly responsible in any shape or form.
Personally speaking I think many of the issues that Tottenham face now are a result of not addressing areas of player recruitment in the right way, and gradually this has built up to be a much bigger overall problem with the squad as a whole. For me there seems a lack of unity and hunger translates into poor and inept performances on the pitch, and Spurs are not only slow to get going, but seem to capitulate far too easily to be deemed a top side now. There needs to be a massive shift in attitude and application to turn things around as presently THFC are a stagnant outfit that will achieve none of its underlying ambitions as long as it is run like this.
I actually agree with everything you said
Tactics should suit the players you have not the ones you wish to have
That’s why Southampton and wolves beat us
Leicester should have beaten us and Watford deserved a point
How far off top 4 would that have left us with
Give me poch or Arry football any day please
Under Conte we are playing the same way as morinho
Win, lose or draw I want to enjoy watching my team
Let’s see how things turn out in the summer though
I agree with you. The 0-2 defeat to Wolves was the result that told me that Conte isn’t committed to work with the players he has and organise them in a way that might bring some success on the pitch. As soon as I saw the line-up, a 2 man midfield with Winks partnering Betancur, and Sánchez the central player in a back 3, I feared the worst. What’s so upsetting is that for a while Conte did seem committed to working with our players and the results were pretty good. But the trio of defeats to Chelsea seems to have convinced him that we are no-hopers. What seems perverse is his insistence on playing a 3-4-3 formation when we don’t have the players to make a success of this. Especially as the result against Southampton had shown everyone that we couldn’t make this work. The players look confused – ‘why are we playing 3-4-3 again ?’ and dispirited. Imagine working for a boss who tells all the world that you’re no good, and rubs it in by playing a system that all the players know doesn’t work! Oh god, this is like a re-run of the worst of Mourinho! This is down to Levy’s desperately poor understanding of how a football club should be managed. He makes reactive decisions, has no plan of how to develop the team, he hopes ‘marquee’ managers will turn up and make it all wonderful, without understanding how they work and how they have achieved success at other clubs. It’s not looking good is it?