Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte has been reflecting on ten months in charge of the club, speaking candidly about how he approaches managing his players and how the club should operate in the transfer market.
Conte took over Tottenham in November 2021 and has turned the club’s fortunes around pretty quickly. He led Spurs to a top-four finish in the Premier League last season, and has made the North London side a very difficult team to beat.
Talk of Spurs being a push-over and the reputation as a team who falls at the final hurdle are long gone now. With Conte in charge, Spurs are now a more aggressive and resilient team.
Things have changed behind the scenes too, with Spurs adapting their transfer policy to suit the requirements of the Italian. Previously, the club would spend big on young talent, whereas Conte prefers to sign tried and tested, experienced players.
In an interview with Michael Bridge for Sky Sports (Football Daily), Conte opened up about how he handles his squad, and what he looks for when it comes to potential transfers.
He said: “For me, the most important thing is first the person and then the player. I know very well that in a difficult situation, that if you can count on good people, for sure you can overcome a difficult situation.
“I can tell this from my experience as a player and a coach. It is very important to have good players and good people. In the difficulty you will see the person. Before I sign a player, my information is totally about the character, the attitude, the behaviour.
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“If the person is a good person, I prefer to have a normal player but a top person. An important player, but a better person.”
On the topic of transfer policy, Conte went on to say the following: “The signal at the end of this transfer window was really clear. Every team, every club, has got to improve and has got to spend money.”
“We know our capacity and we know our possibility to spend money. I think first of all, that we have to try spend money in the right way and to sign players that can improve our squad.
“I think we did a really good job since I arrived, with Kulusevski, with Rodrigo Bentancur, with Richarlison, with Bissouma.”
The latter, of course, has not quite forced his way into Conte’s plans just yet, but Conte said: “Bissouma is not playing regularly, but he has good skill and he can help us a lot. It was the same for Lenglet.”
Conte concluded by saying, “In England, it is a big, big sporting war. We have to do our best with the money that the owner can give us.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Wise words from the gaffer there. He’s absolutely right about putting the person first, and you only have to look at someone like Richarlison to see it’s clear that he values attitude over everything.
As for the transfer market, too many times in the past Spurs have been guilty of spending money in the wrong way, and it certainly seems we are becoming more prudent with our transfer activity now.
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