Irish Daily Mirror

Magic potion all in the mind for Conte

- MATTHEW DUNN SEE PULLOUT PAGE 12

BY

ANTONIO CONTE has discovered the Jekyll and Hyde concoction that turns Liverpool into “monsters”.

Now he wants his Tottenham players to get a taste of the same stuff when they travel to Anfield for an encounter which could settle the destinatio­n of the title and the race for Champions League qualificat­ion.

He calls the magic formula “winning mentality”.

Jurgen Klopp described his own players as “mentality monsters” when they kept their Quadruple dream alive by beating Villarreal to reach the Champions League final.

And it was a term echoed by Conte (top) when he was asked to say what he feels has marked Liverpool out this season.

It is why he sees tonight’s trip as instrument­al in Tottenham’s developmen­t. “In this aspect, it will be very important not only to get the points, but also to understand which is our level - the level we are reaching in this kind of game,” he said. “And also to understand this type of monster.

“A lot of people speak about winning mentality, winning mentality, but, hmmm, you start to get the winning mentality when you start to win.

“Because when you start to win you understand that the work you did brought this result.

“When you start to win, winning becomes a drug for you and you want to repeat it. You want to have this fantastic moment, to celebrate, to feel in this moment that you’re the best, you understand?

“In the same moment this makes you stronger because when you win it means you are the best.

“When you know you are the best you feel belief starting to rise. This is important, because when you’re a winner and you start the game, you know that at the end, sooner or later, you’re going to win the game.”

Ultimately it is a recipe for success chairman Daniel Levy (left) is desperate to reproduce at Spurs - but Conte explains it is a hard act to follow. “First of all, it depends on the desire of the club,” he said.

“Liverpool put Jurgen in charge seven years ago. They wanted to build something important, to again fight for the Champions League, win titles and continue the important story of Liverpool.

“If you want to create something important you need time, you need patience, especially if you start to work with a team that starts behind the top positions.

“It’s not easy.”

TEAMS:

 ?? ??
 ?? ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Ireland