Ex-Manager watch: Antonio Conte

felmani26 said:

People thinking 352 would suddenly cure our woes are gravely mistaken and considering what we've routinely been told that wholesale changes are afoot come the summer yet here we are with Conte being genuinely questioned by some?!?

There’s no quick fix here - it’s not the manager, it’s the players and the mentality that needs to permeate from the top down.

I’m far from writing this season off obviously but the focus is and always has been on the summer so these results/performances need to be put into context and certainly one that doesn’t draw a conclusion (laughably) that Conte isn’t the right man to take us forward.

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Agreed 100%. Its annoying on the day but we know the manager is top quality, that's just fact. He may get it wrong from time to time but this is the man we need to back. If DL doesn't get that now then we really are in trouble!

I like his post match comments today. It was measured and not the hissy fit we'd been told to expect.

TheTizzer said:

McKinsey. Been their very enriching MO for many, many, many years. And the majority of the time, they know absolutely fuck all. But sadly, you waste a few million to find that out. (yes, very much based on person experience. and my apologies to anyone who works there)

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I was going to give them an honorouble mention but didnt want to be sued haha.

Lloris really screwed up and some others too but ignoring the 352 etc, the following was absolutely criminal from conte:

Sessegnon over Reguillon
Winks over Hojbjerg

There was no need to rest Reg, Emerson was terrible recently so I was okay with Doherty getting a chance but rotating both wingbacks when we've got a weeks rest was so naive with Reguillon actually playing well recently.

He started Bentancur which was definitely the right thing to do even if obvious, but Bentancur to me needs a defensive holder next to him so I can't understand why Hojbjerg didn't play instead of Winks. Made us so open and anyone would've guessed we'd need to avoid that after Southampton.

Conte has his share of the blame but he's the only reason to have some hope for now IMO. I hope and I don't think he will walk this summer, at least not before the transfer window closes.

If he does, fair enough, but it is only his fault for accepting the job mid season and not even waiting to see if he's being backed. Farewell and welcome back home Poch.

Thewobbler said:

Not hard to understand at all. Most of the defensive side of the team are shite. Lets be honest all the players except romero most fans have wanted out the door for a while. Davies, sess, sanchez, doc, and dier (whos been better this season). Rodon has been snubbed by 3 managers now so clearly not good enough.

Add to that winks is still getting game time.

There was always going to be a new manager bounce with someone like conte walking in but now were are reverting back to the norm. These palyers are simply not good enough and conte tells us this after every game in his post match confrences.

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Agree. But I think he's been an idiot for the last two games. Completely outhought and outmanaged by two managers we Spurs fans would have kittens about if we hired them. And both were bold enough to say in their press conferences that they knew exactly how he's set up the time and what to expect. Both effecitvely saying we are predictable. Both saying, that when we play with a 2 man midfield it's easy to outplay us through the middle.

Even the casual fan can see when we have played a 352, we've been good and effective. Most times we've played a 343 we look either a smidge above average, or outright shit. Yet, Conte persists.

Why? No fucking clue. But clearly opposition managers have figured it out, and are running circles around him tactically.

The players were shit against Soton and Wolves. Both times completely outplayed and outfought. So whatever Conte is working on in training, is clearly not taking hold. Or if it is, it's only for a few minutes here and there.

It's his hubris that's buggered us. His obsession with playing the same players, no matter what. To play the same way, no matter what. To give guys like Lucas, Sonny, Winks, Dav and Davies chance, after chance, after chance and yet Rodon, Stevie B and even fucking White are not being given a sniff. Then to compound matters, he sanctioned pushing out Tanguy and Lo Celso, leaving us woefully short in midfield. I get Tanguy is beyond saving. But ejecting Lo Celso, knowing that we simply cannot play a 343, was and is boneheaded.

Yes, I get that both of the aforementioned need shifting, but right now it has left us extremely thin, with virtually no depth in an area of the field where we need the most help, by FAR. It speaks volumes that in the last three games (despite beating Brighton), that our midfield has been largely overrun (at fucking home!!), against Brighton, Soton and Wolves... and guess who hasn't played? Skippy.

I apologize to everyone, as I am so angry and disappointed right now. As I feel like we're witnessing the worse Spurs teams in over 10 years. And right now, we have a DoF, that needs time, but so far, has made more bad moves than good ones. We have a world class coach, who is also world class temperamental. We have a chairman who seemingly refuses outside investment. But also won't invest anything of substance himself. A matter that will be compounded when Newcastle truly open their vast wallet this summer.

If the powers that be at the club don't put their best foot forward this summer, I fully expect us to be idling in the wilderness like we did through much of the 90s, for another five or six years. Or at least until ENIC fuck off and we have owners come in whose desire to be the best on the field, outweighs their obsession with being the best off the field.

What I see is a team in complete free fall. And unless Fabio pulls his thumb out.... it'll be a long time before we return to something resembling the Poch era.

gio747 said:

Agreed 100%. Its annoying on the day but we know the manager is top quality, that's just fact. He may get it wrong from time to time but this is the man we need to back. If DL doesn't get that now then we really are in trouble!

I like his post match comments today. It was measured and not the hissy fit we'd been told to expect.

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No - he's obviously well aware of the challenge ahead. I'm actually quite surprised that he's grasped the full extent of the challenge and yet he seems fine with it. Maybe he wants to prove to himself that he can come in to an underachieving club and turn it around. If he didn't think however that he would be given the tools to do it then I'm sure he'd be off.

wspur said:

Conte has his share of the blame but he's the only reason to have some hope for now IMO. I hope and I don't think he will walk this summer, at least not before the transfer window closes.

If he does, fair enough, but it is only his fault for accepting the job mid season and not even waiting to see if he's being backed. Farewell and welcome back home Poch.

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Is that after he takes the United job?

Tarricko said:

There is some kind of truth in this I reckon. All the players seem really nice, the atmosphere at the club seems really nice. Everyone always looks like it's a lovely time at training - like a spa weekend.

There's no edge to anyone in the team. No one demanding more. I think Dele Alli fell into this trap. He came from a working class background playing rough football with grown men for MK - he was hungry. Then we softened him up and he lost his edge.

It comes from the top. We don't act like a big club or demand more from the top down.

Other than maybe Kane (debatable now tbh) I don't see that burning flame in any of these players.

Maybe I'm just rambling about this because I just watched the Rooney documentary. He ran around the pitch like a raging bull his whole career.

Tbf football doesn't really have much of those Terry / Keane / Gerrard types does it. Now we have players twatting around on Tiktok and swapping shirts at half time.

Ramble over

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I did noticed Bentancur absolutely berating Davies during the game today when the ball went out for a throw in which was surprising but refreshing to see considering he's only been here a couple of weeks and it's pretty ballsy to shout and point at a player thats one of our senior and longest serving members. We need more of that. Players need to call eachother out more but obviously for good reason rather than the usual pointing and blaming another player when said player misplaces his own pass.

Conte said straight away the quality of the squad is poor and it's really showing now. How many goals have we conceded that have been our own fault? Not just poor defending but literally passing the ball to the opposition or making a mistake in our own 3rd that results in a goal. It's unreal.

Another 2 fucking brain farts today cost us yet again.

Contes system and tactics are world class, but his system relies on capable players, which for the majority we don't have, especially in key areas like defence. Going forward we average over 2 for goals expected xg. We create more than enough to score 2+ goals per game. Issue is the system relies heavily on the wingbacks and Reguilon has the potential but often makes the wrong choice when it matters and, well lets just not bother talking about RWB....

The system requires the 3 centre backs, well atleast 2 of them to be comfortable and competent on the ball, currently we only really have Romero, maybe Dier. the 2 or 3 midfielders also need that quality and to be press resistant, currently the new boy Bentancur seems the only one capable and also since hes joined shows how poor the other central midfielders are really because he already looks streets above in terms of composure and calmness.

Unfortunately we're just going to have to see this season out, pray to the gods results go our way and we sneak 4th but in reality we'll probably end up 6th. The summer is going to be the biggest we've ever had I reckon and next season we could look a completely different outfit.

Metalhead said:

Is that after he takes the United job?

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But that's a debate for another thread...

Adam456 said:

Agree with many of the formational and player selection comments in the last 2 pages and I basically made those in the match thread so I won't bother repeating but I will ask why is he so stubborn ?

Look around the middle of the table and see how many managers are extracting a much higher return from their inferior squads. Why is he not adapting and working with what he has like they are. If nothing else (1 week ago anyway) with loads of games in hand and such a good chance of getting back into the CL, why not be pragmatic for now and reap the rewards in the transfer market in the summer. At least organise the defence without Dier ?

Maybe we have just Spursed him up already. I don't know. But this is not terribly impressive from such a world-beating manager.

I am going to be, possibly, the first to say it but if Poch really is 'available' in the summer and Conté only has a year left we might have a difficult decision on our hands

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Bold of you to assume we have a superior squad.

I'll be honest, there are perhaps 12 players in our squad that I think are worth keeping. Two of them are new signings and perhaps another 3-4 of them will never be stronger than squad rotation.

My only reasoning for playing 3-4-3 today was because there are 3/4 players in that team that he wants playing next season and want to get them used to the formation.

That’s all I’ve got, because as soon as that team came out with Winks as one of two that result was barely in doubt

He hasn’t hardly got anything to work with, but I am a little surprised he stuck with that

JCRD said:

Conte reminds me of a Consultant who comes in appraises everything, tells us its all shit, then fucks off with a few million quid.

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I thought that was Jose

Cochise said:

Bold of you to assume we have a superior squad.

I'll be honest, there are perhaps 12 players in our squad that I think are worth keeping. Two of them are new signings and perhaps another 3-4 of them will never be stronger than squad rotation.

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Agree , so many continue to over rate our squad.

Roberts84 said:

How can you say Rodon deserves a run in the team when you don’t watch him train? Why have none of the three managers that he’s had a spurs not played him

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How can you say he doesn't, when you see the defenders who DO play.

Either way you try to dress it up, you can't keep playing the same defenders who are letting us down, season after season & manager after manager.

I have t gone with a lot of posters on this because I wasn’t really sure it was the right move but I do now. If he is going to keep with three at the back then he needs to put a winger at right back. Either Lucas or bergwijn. We need to have that pace and attacking outlet down the right. Sure it will make us defensively worse, but to be fair, we are pretty bad defensively now, so maybe just having an attacker/out ball down that side would be a real help.

I really think he’s against it though.

THX2208 said:

I really hope after that today Conte sees sence and scrapes the two man pivot and goes to a three. We need a cruncher - spreader -buzzer in the middle.
COYS ?

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Have you got any FIFA cards to explain those positions and attributes to us ?

i reckon he will be gone before the summer. Can’t see why he would want to stay when there will be better jobs out there

Hoping he incorporates them two with Bentancur infront & switch to a 3-5-2

13VanDerBale13 said:

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Was unaware of that. It tells you alot

MK Yid said:

Have you got any FIFA cards to explain those positions and attributes to us ?

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I have a few ???