Tottenham head coach Antonio Conte vows to bring consistency and play attractive football
Antonio Conte has signed an 18-month deal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, replacing Nuno Espirito Santo who was sacked on Monday; Conte took charge of his first Spurs training session on Tuesday; “My coaching philosophy is very simple – to play good and attractive football for our fans.”
Antonio Conte has vowed to bring consistency to Tottenham by playing “attractive” football and says it is an “honour” to be the club’s new head coach.
Conte has signed an 18-month contract – with an option to extend – and replaces Nuno Espirito Santo following successful talks with Tottenham’s hierarchy in London on Monday.
The 52-year-old, who guided Chelsea to the 2016-17 Premier League title and the FA Cup the following season, has taken up his first managerial post since leaving Inter Milan and took charge of his first Spurs training session on Tuesday afternoon at Hotspur Way.
In his first interview since being appointed, Conte told Spurs TV: “My coaching philosophy is very simple – to play good and attractive football for our fans. To have a stable team, not up and down.
“I think the fans deserve to have a competitive team with a will to fight. I will do everything to deserve their support. This type of situation pushes you and increases the desire to work and to do something important for the fans of this club.
“This is a great opportunity, an honour to become the manager.”
Conte departed Inter by mutual consent in May, just three weeks after leading the club to a first Serie A title in 11 years, adding to the three Italian league titles he claimed with Juventus between 2011 and 2014.
He had joined Inter after leaving Chelsea, where he became one of just four managers to win the Premier League in his first season in English football. Despite winning the FA Cup in his second season at Stamford Bridge, the former Italy boss was dismissed after a fifth-placed league finish.
The Italian – initially targeted by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy in the summer – has the second-highest win rate of coaches who have taken charge of at least 50 Premier League games, with 51 victories from 76 matches, trailing only Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
“The past is important and I’m proud. For me, the new challenge is Tottenham. I want them to become an important part of my career as a manager,” Conte added.
“The club and Daniel Levy wanted me strongly. There was a call from Tottenham this summer, but I was very clear with Tottenham because I had just finished with Inter Milan after an important season, a tough season and honestly it wasn’t the right time to start another experience.
“I prefer to wait, to enjoy the time away with my family and also because I think emotionally I was still with the last experience at Inter.
“Tottenham are an important club in England and an important club in the world. The stadium and the training ground are wonderful.”
Paratici: Success under Conte not guaranteed
Conte’s appointment sees him reunited with Spurs managing director of football Fabio Paratici, who joined the club in the summer after 11 years in a similar role at Juventus.
Speaking ahead of Thursday’s Europa League Conference home game against Vitesse Arnhem, Paratici described Conte as “one of the best coaches in the world” but says success under the new Spurs boss is not guaranteed.
“Nobody can give you assurances to win something, but we have to be focused, committed to this project 100 per cent,” he told reporters on Wednesday. “This is what we can do and have to do. We have to do the best.
“I worked with Antonio before and I know him very well. He’s a hard worker, has a lot of passion, a lot of knowledge and is one of the best coaches in the world. The track record speaks for itself.”
‘No discussions on transfers’
With just under two months to go until the start of the January transfer window, Paratici also confirmed he has held no discussions with Conte so far about possible incomings.
“Not at all, because we trust in our players,” he said. “We trust them a lot. We are focused to be better as a club, as a team.
“We need to work hard day by day, but for sure we believe that we can achieve our targets. We have everything here to achieve – big infrastructure, big club, big players, big history. We have everything to achieve big things.
“I think the team is competitive. We trust in the players, we have very good players, so we don’t speak about (new) players now, it is not the right time.”
Saturday’s 3-0 defeat by Manchester United, former boss Nuno’s last game in charge, was Spurs’ fifth Premier League loss in seven games and left them ninth in the top flight, 10 points behind league leaders Chelsea.
