‘Pass without even looking’ – Spurs star opens up on Conte’s tactical work in training

Lucas Moura has admitted the Tottenham players do a lot of tactical work under Antonio Conte, so much so that they are aware of exactly where their teammates will be in different phases of play. 

Tottenham’s results have improved considerably since Conte’s arrival at the club, with the North Londoners now pushing for a top-four finish.

However, over the last few weeks, there has been a sense that the Italian has realised the enormity of the task on his hands, with the 52-year-old admitting on multiple occasions there is a gap in quality between Spurs and the best sides in the Premier League.

While the Lilywhites still undoubtedly have a lot of room for improvement, Moura admitted that the players now have a very clear understanding of Conte’s system, thanks to the former Inter boss’ attention to detail during the training sessions.

Moura told ESPN Brasil (as translated by Sport Witness): “He’s a guy who is very detail-oriented. So he works very tactically. Practically every day, we do tactical work, moving. 

“So we know very well what to do on the field. The movement we have to make. The passing options, which he wants the player who has the ball to have. 

“He says that, the player who has the ball must have at least three options to choose from. And then we decide what to do. So that draws a lot of attention. We work a lot tactically. 

“So many times we already know that the player, our teammate, will be in a certain part of the pitch and we already pass without even looking. So this is very interesting, it’s been working well.”

Moura has been one of Tottenham’s most consistent performers since Conte’s arrival at the club and the Brazilian admitted that the new Spurs head coach has given him the freedom to receive the ball more centrally.

He added: “In my positioning, my way of playing, he’s given me a lot of freedom. 

“He likes me to come and get the game, for me to be more central, not so much on the wing, where I played for a long time during my career, very open from the wing. 

“This ends up limiting my moves a little bit. I like to go more into the middle now, to create plays, to seek the ball, to set up. He’s given me that freedom, that confidence, and it’s come out really well.”

Spurs Web Opinion 

Conte has been clear from day one that he needs time to get Spurs competing with the best sides in the league. Recent results have shown that there is plenty of work to do but I only expect the team to get better as they get more used to the Italian’s system.

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