CONTE GAME FOR A LAUGH!
New Spurs boss wants players to enjoy themselves again after miserable stint under Nuno
ANTONIO CONTE issued a powerful rallying cry to his new Tottenham players during an emotional first day in charge, telling his squad: ‘I’ll give you everything.’ When the Italian met his players at around 3pm on Tuesday, he immediately held a team meeting during which he gave a passionate address. Conte was not able to officially take training as he awaited international clearance, but that did not prevent him from making an instant impact on his new players. In a hectic opening day at the club’s Enfield HQ, Conte told his new players that he will instil a winning mentality into the team but they must be prepared to put in the hard yards, particularly in training. His sessions are notoriously intense, and although the 52-year-old only attended training yesterday in a watching capacity, it is understood the players got a sense of how hard such sessions will be under the former Chelsea boss. Conte expressed to his new players that he is completely available for each and every one of them — but only if they give him everything in return. He stressed the importance of togetherness among the squad — to work hard for each other — but also insisted they should start to enjoy themselves again after a tough start to the season. That will be music to the ears of a host of players who felt life at the training ground was miserable under the sacked Nuno Espirito Santo due to what they viewed as the Portuguese’s morose personality. ‘To be Tottenham manager is a great pleasure, a great honour,’ Conte said yesterday. ‘Now I want to repay this trust. My coaching philosophy is very simple: to play good football and attractive football for our fans with passion. To have a stable team, not up and down.’ That will warm the hearts of Spurs supporters after the pragmatic approaches of Nuno and Jose Mourinho in recent times. Conte made a point of speaking English to everyone during his first session, something he will continue to do during his reign to ensure everyone feels on an even footing.
The players are understood to have been deeply impressed during his first 24 hours at the helm and found him inspirational. Speaking yesterday, club captain and World Cup-winning goalkeeper Hugo Lloris expressed his admiration for Spurs’ new boss, saying: ‘It is a great opportunity to work under one of the greatest managers of the last few years.
‘We have to share the responsibility. When it does not work, it does not belong only to one person or two or three on the staff. It belongs to everyone. Now is a new chapter with passion, with emotion, with demand. We need to increase our level individually to help the team to get better.’
Conte was due to take another watching brief at yesterday’s session as he awaited international clearance to officially take charge of his new club.
Provided there is no delay in his work permit, he will be in the dug-out for tonight’s uEfA Conference League match against Vitesse Arnhem. Spurs need a victory after slipping to third in their group when beaten 1-0 in Arnhem last month.
How they perform between now and the end of the year will play a key factor in how Conte reshapes his squad once the January transfer window opens.
As Sportsmail reported yesterday, fiorentina forward Dusan Vlahovic and Inter Milan midfielder Nicolo Barella are on Conte’s radar. AC Milan midfielder franck Kessie, whose contract at San Siro runs out next summer, is also interesting him.
Spurs’ Italian director of football fabio Paratici’s links in Serie A could prove instrumental in securing those targets in January, though he has played down what is set to be a busy transfer window for the club.
‘We haven’t spoken about players, we have to be focused on our team and then we will see,’ Paratici said. ‘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.’ TV: Tottenham v Vitesse Arnhem, LIVE on BT Sport ESPN from 7.30pm (kick-off 8pm).