Conte’s content as Son shines in Seoul
ANTONIO CONTE looked tanned and relaxed as he flashed smiles and fooled around posing for photos with Son Heung-min and cast the unequivocal verdict South Korea longed to hear about their national hero.
‘A world-class player, one of the best,’ beamed Conte, as he fielded questions from a tightly packed press conference room in the bowels of Seoul’s World Cup Stadium, where Tottenham launch their pre- season schedule today against the K-League All Stars.
‘Sonny can play in any team in the world. We are lucky he stays with us and I am very lucky to have him in my team.’
The room beamed back its agreement and Son shifted awkwardly in his seat beside the boss.
It was the first time Conte had spoken in public since the final game of last season. That day, a 5-0 destruction of Norwich clinched a place in the Champions League but the Italian let it be known he would be flying home to clear his mind before meeting to discuss his future at the club. Doubts lingered after all those veiled threats about ambition but 50 days on from Carrow Road and more than 5,000 miles east in the Korean capital, he cut a figure of absolute contentment.
‘It was very important at the end of the season to speak to the club, and take the best decision for the club, not for myself,’ said
Conte yesterday.
‘It was simple to continue this project because, first of all, I have another year of my contract.
‘ I am totally involved. You know very well my ambitions. I want the club to improve. The top four was a great achievement for us but we have just started this project.’ Music to the ears of Tottenham supporters who have seen Conte transform the team and the club since his arrival in November. Not only lifting them up the Premier League, also forging a new positive outlook, striding into the transfer market and signing five players before embarking on the pre-season tour.
‘The club worked very well in the window,’ said Conte. ‘For every coach, to have players quickly is very important because you can work with them and try to put them into the idea of football. It was good to sign five players quickly.
‘We added players with quality and the right characteristics to improve this squad, and let’s see what happens in the next two months. If there’s the possibility to strengthen the squad we’ll do it.’
Conte had a glint in his eye as he led an open training session in Seoul. As he refereed an 11-on-11 game in the heart of the session, he could not resist stepping in to make the occasional interception and pass.
Son said the players were too tired to talk after the punishing running exercise led by Gian Piero Ventrone at the end of training, with some players completing 42 lengths of the pitch in Seoul’s sweltering heat and humidity. Conte was coached by Ventrone at Juventus and likes to joke that the fitness guru is going soft in his old age but the players are unlikely to agree. ‘It’s very hard, we’ll leave it at that,’ said Son, when asked how it was after he collapsed exhausted in the midst of the session. Harry Kane also fell on to his knees and threw up. ‘It’s intense,’ was Japhet Tanganga’s summary. ‘ He really wants us to work hard. He has his methods and really wants us to buy into it.’
For Spurs, it is a good sign. Conte appears to be relishing his first pre- season as Tottenham boss and the prospect of drilling this newly improved squad into a unit capable of challenging for a trophy.
‘I know to win is difficult,’ he said. ‘But our ambition is to be competitive and fight for everything.’