Whilst I only follow a couple, my Cousin follows most of the team and he did mention there was no farewell message from anyone. Can't say I'm surprised, was only here for four months and there wasn't really a player who benefited from his arrival. Doubt it's anything personal but it was a short and (not) sweet stint that wouldn't have left any lasting impact I'd imagine.
Wow. That’s really telling. It makes you wonder how mad things were behind the scenes! Not even a a “best wishes gaffer”. Radio silence.
Good to see. Both in terms of fitness and overall play. 343 and 352 are, perhaps even more so than other formations, about positional play and situational awareness. You don’t need to be Mousa Dembele or Tanguy (able to make space anywhere due to technical ability and physical prowess) to be creative if as a team you’ve been coached to pass and move in a certain way, and if your teammates have learnt these patterns so they don’t have to waste time before passing. A well coached team who can think quickly and move well into space will trump a team of wonderful technicians with no idea what to do every time.
A fascinating press conference with Antonio Conte today. In addressing whether he was the manager to turn us into winners, he said "I need time to change something here on the pitch. Outside it’s fantastic, maybe too much? But on the pitch we have to change many, many things & it can’t happen in a short time." The issue about matters away from the pitch being "maybe too much" struck a chord for some. I'm not going to suggest what that might have meant, as it'd just be guesswork, but, without prompting, Conte's clearly setting the agenda as him being here to re-set the club's focus on what happens on the pitch. Halleleujah for that! It's overdue and very welcome.
could be lost in translation, but it sounds like he’s saying it’s all well and good having the stadium and facilities, but the team has clearly been neglected in the process! love the bloke already.
It's bloody crazy just how much one man has changed fan's perceptions in the matter of a few days. Last Saturday I was as glum as anything, I'd just watched another **** show, experienced one of the most toxic atmosphere's inside the ground that I've ever seen at Spurs and felt like we were going absolutely nowhere, even our best players who've generally never let us down weren't performing and we were in serious danger of becoming a laughing stock... no wait, we were a laughing stock. A so called big six club getting thumped left, right and centre, home and away. Now it feels like we have a serious chance of progressing as a club under one of the world's very best managers and the sense of optimism is at it's highest since probably Pochettino 2017 where we had absolute faith in the manager. Make no mistake I'm still expecting some absolute dour performances for a good few weeks and even months because as the man himself has basically said it's no quick fix but I feel like the club's in safe hands once again having been lost for a few years. All ENIC have to do is back this guy and they'll win back the fans. I'm certain of it.
This is the difference - I’m also happy to accept crap performances in the short term, simply because the man making the changes is currently one of the best managers in world football. He’s got the right to do what needs to be done because he’s a proven winner (recently) and there’s no reason to doubt him. With Jose, his prestige ended long before he joined us. And many of us saw that coming when we appointed him. And again with Nuno, the fans weren’t willing to accept that either, (especially after Jose) because his track record wasn’t glorious enough to justify what we were watching each week. conte can do what he wants as far as I’m concerned.
With his managerial stock value currently so high, you would expect Conte to have carte blanche on how the squad is dealt with. I am pondering which player he may wish to get rid of that will first test Levy interference (NDombele, GLC, Dele Alli ?? ) .
He's taking over the **** those two have left too, as well as the end of Poch's reign. So essentially three years of managerial (and hierarchy) **** ups that have included poor decision making, poor performances, poor coaching and a lot of poor players. This ain't an overnight job but one that I feel Conte is well up for and one he'll succeed in so long as this club gives him the tools to do so. He's up there right now with Pep, Klopp and Tuchel in my book and look what's happened at those clubs when they've backed the managers. We don't even have the same expectations as those either, any Spurs fan would just about bite your hand off for any single trophy and a style of football that doesn't make you wanna punch a golden retriever in anger.
its an interesting question. Sometimes you just can’t tell who is going to respond well and who won’t. Personally I’d be really surprised if there’s a change in fortunes for Dele. He strikes me as the one “big” player who I can’t see getting a look in. I think his time at the club has run it’s course. I do wonder whether Ndombele could prove us wrong though. The bloke seems to have quite a high opinion of himself and a dodgy attitude. But will the arrival of Conte invigorate him as he now feels that he’s got a manager that matches his ambitions, and that he respects? Maybe it’ll be a great match up. Maybe it’ll be a total car crash and Conte will finish him off. Only time will tell, but I think there could be some surprises.
I think right now, even Levy won't prevent another move for Dele should an offer come in, if anything he may even courage it now, whilst I can't see him losing much sleep over either Ndombele or Lo Celso leaving if an offer came in. Albeit there might be hope for Ndombele under Conte, seeing as Conte supposedly had an interest in him at Inter. Kane and Son are probably the only two in the squad I doubt the hierarchy will want to lose but thankfully I don't see Conte wanting to sell either anyway. Here's just hoping he tells Levy and Paratici to start sorting Lloris a new deal though, blank cheque if need be.
...and Conte's obviously made it clear what that backing amounts to... "My contract is not a problem, 18 months is a duration agreed with the club, who understood the sacrifices they have to make for me." There it is. No doubt on Conte's part. The club have understood and agreed what needs to be done. Now, they'd best deliver...
One thing I've seen said elsewhere is that, if Conte isn't the next project manager, he's the nuke that paves the way for the next project manager
So this is now proven to be completely wrong. The most highly rated manager in our history has joined us.
Ndombele has talent and possibly could succeed if he knuckles down. Dele is done imo, way too many chances and he’s not done it for so long, he needs a clean break. Lo Celso just isn’t very good but probably less ‘trouble’ than the other two. If I knew they’d sign 3 CM in the same window then I’d happily lose Dele and Lo Celso in January.
I think we shouldn't be too quick to negatively judge any of the players. This man turned Victor Moses, serial loanee, into a key player. I simply have no idea who will respond to the training methods and who won't. This is a wake up call for the entire squad. Who the hell do you think you are if you don't toe the line, and knuckle down with this manager? Conte does nothing but improve players and win. He's now at Tottenham, and has a DOF who he's worked with successfully before. No buying of players that he doesn't want, like his last spell at Chelsea. That means he is confidently building a Tottenham that are going to win something eventually, with or without some of these players. I think when he said, 'too much', he may well be saying that there is more than enough quality in the facilities, an embarrassment of riches in comparison to the quality of focussed and targeted work actually being done by the players. He's gonna work these players to the maximum, and I'm here for it.
