Jack Pitt-Brooke has revealed that Antonio Conte has continued giving specific instructions about training and picking the starting eleven while he has been away.
Conte has been in the dugout for just two of Tottenham’s matches since the start of February – the defeats against Leicester City and AC Milan.
He has been recovering from his gallbladder surgery back home in Italy, with Cristian Stellini overseeing proceedings for the other matches.
Until the disappointing 1-0 loss against Sheffield United on Wednesday, which came as a severe blow for Tottenham’s hopes of ending their trophy drought this season, Stellini had a 100 per cent record for the games he took charge.
Following Tottenham’s win over Chelsea on Sunday, Tottenham’s assistant head coach was gracious, insisting that it was the processes put in place by Conte that were responsible for the results (Football.London).
Pitt-Brooke has explained that the Spurs head coach has continued to very much play a central role in all of the decisions over the past few weeks despite not being at Hotspur Way.
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The journalist told The View From The Lane Podcast: “I certainly think confidence has been low and I don’t think Conte is good at lifting confidence.
“He’s a brilliant coach, but he’s not good at lifting spirits. Conte’s absence has caused players to take on responsibility a bit.
“I don’t want to take things out of context here, Conte’s illness is not a good thing at all, but one of the by-products of him being away is collective decision-making and autonomy.
“I think Conte is coming back to a happier dressing room. It will be interesting in terms of decision-making. Do they go back to Conte telling them exactly what to do?
“He’s not just letting them get on with it at the moment. He’s been very specific with Stellini about instructions and what they’ll do in training and what the team is going to be and all that.”
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The senior players have certainly stepped up to take responsibility amidst the leadership vacuum due to Conte’s absence but there is no doubt that having the Italian back will be a boost to the squad.
Spurs cannot afford to dwell on their loss to Sheffield United, with some big Premier League and Champions League games on the horizon.
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