Robbie Keane has said that Tottenham must qualify for the Champions League if they are going to attract the type of players Antonio Conte needs in the summer to challenge for top honours.
Tottenham had a mini clear out in the January transfer window, with Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso and Bryan Gil leaving on loan, and Dele Alli sealed a permanent move to Everton.
Conte admitted last week that letting four players leave in January was not a normal situation, stating that it shows that the club had made mistakes in the transfer market over the past few years (Football.London).
The Spurs boss insisted that the squad is now more complete following the additions of Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur.
Both players had promising debuts in Tottenham’s 3-1 win over Brighton in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday, producing impressive cameos off the bench to help the North Londoners see the win out.
Speaking after the game, Keane insisted that Conte will be looking to take Tottenham all the way in the FA Cup.
However, the former Tottenham striker suggested that finishing in the top four might be a bigger priority for the Italian in order to attract the kind of players that he wants to bring into the club in the summer.
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Keane told ITV 4 (on 6/2/22 at 22:00): “If they (Spurs) play like that, certainly the first half, they’ll win a lot more games than they lose.
“They’re only a couple points off Man United with a couple of games in hand.
“I think for Tottenham this season, if they can win a trophy, the FA Cup and get into the Champions League, I think that’s a very very successful season.
“I think the Champions League is huge for Tottenham. For [Antonio] Conte signing new players in the summer, if you have the Champions League that’ll attract them.”
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With the additions of Kulusevski and Bentancur, Conte might believe that Spurs now have the squad depth to challenge on both fronts – for a top-four finish and the FA Cup.
Although the Tottenham boss was quite upset at being knocked out of the Europa Conference League in unfair circumstances, not being in Europe could prove a blessing in disguise for his side over the coming months.
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