Tottenham Hotspur attacker Dejan Kulusevski has spoken out about being dropped from Antonio Conte’s starting XI, insisting that he didn’t worry about the whole situation.
Kulusevski has been one of Tottenham’s most consistent performers since joining the North London club in January of this year. He registered five goals and eight assists last season (Transfermarkt).
The young attacker has had a pretty decent start to this campaign too, with one goal and three assists in the first nine games of the season (Transfermarkt). Despite this, Kulusevski has spent some time on the Spurs bench this term.
Kulusevski was dropped to the bench for the Premier League fixture against Fulham, and remained there for the following two Champions League games. He came on as a substitute in all three fixtures, and impressed from the bench.
The decision to drop Kulusevski (or rest him, depending on how you view it), was considered a divisive move by Antonio Conte. The Italian rarely explains himself to anyone, but he admitted he did speak to Kulusevski about the situation (Football.London).
Now, in an interview with Fotbollskanalen, Kulusevski has revealed what that conversation entailed.
He said: “He gave no explanation. It was more that he wanted to talk and hear how I was doing.
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“Personally, I didn’t feel like I needed to ask why I wasn’t playing because I felt like I was playing at a really high level right now. It was more that we talked and joked around a bit.
“I like him very much as a person and look up to him very much. I am very grateful to have him.
“I felt really, really good and really strong. I have played the best football in my life in these months. I felt calm because I knew I changed the matches. I was not stressed about it.”
When asked about his involvement with Spurs moving forward, Kulusevski was as positive as ever: “I am very pleased with my role and how the team develops. I am very hopeful for the future.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Squad rotation is a very normal and a very necessary part of any top team, and should be nothing to panic about or really even question the manager’s decision over. Dejan Kulusevski knows he has been playing well, and knows that he needs to continue that form to keep his place.
The fact that he and Conte had a chat about the situation is reassuring, but make no mistake, every player in that Tottenham Hotspur squad will already know what is expected of them anyway, and will understand that they will not always be in the starting XI.
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