Spurs’ demise casts doubt over Conte’s approach

It has been a tumultuous campaign for the Tottenham Hotspur faithful, to say the least. Still reeling from the disappointment of Nuno Espírito Santo — sacked just four months into his tenure — the arrival of Antonio Conte symbolised a statement of intent from higher-ups at the club.

Known for high demands and a knack for achieving silverware, the Italian was held up as the saviour, poised to kick a faltering contingent of players into gear.

Just over three months since his arrival, and after what appeared to be a steady incline, Spurs’ upward trajectory has levelled off in respect of both performances and the manager’s positivity when assessing his side.

Following two sobering defeats against Wolves and Southampton in the space of four days, the former Inter boss appeared dejected when analysing his means to achieve success.

“What happened in January is not easy,” he said in an interview with Sky Sport Italia regarding the options at his disposal.

"“Four players left in January. Four important players for Tottenham, two have arrived. So even numerically instead of reinforcing yourself you may have, on paper, weakened.”"

"“Then precise choices were made for many reasons. But I certainly never expected that in January four players who I still considered important would change their shirts for a thousand reasons. This shows the difficulty. Tottenham in the last session of the summer transfer market and in January changed eight players.”"

Does Antonio Conte deserve sympathy?

Irrespective of the strength of his squad or decisions that fall outside Conte’s control, question marks have begun to arise regarding the North-London side’s tactical setup.

As seen at his previous clubs, Antonio Conte invariably sets out his side in an adaptation of either a 3-5-2 or a 3-4-3 formation, utilising a pragmatic approach that owes to success on the counter.

His short time with Spurs reinforces this, his side is often seen employing a flat midfield and two wingers behind a lone striker.

Perhaps the key position in Conte’s system, however, is the capability of the respective wing-backs. After reports, the Lilywhites’ boss was unhappy with his current options in the position, several links to potential incomings failed to materialise, leaving the aforementioned between a rock and a hard place.

In the two recent losses, he has rotated his left-sided options of Reguilón and Sessegnon along with Doherty and Emerson on the opposite flank.

The results speak for themselves, but below the surface, the extent of Spurs’ woes in wide areas will be disconcerting ahead of a supposed top-four push.

Focusing on the loss to Southampton. Ralph Hasenhüttl’s dynamic approach, utilising forward-thinking full backs to overload their opposition, exposed his opposite number.

Conte’s side proved ill-equipped to deal with runs in behind, forcing his wing-backs to form a back five which then allowed the Saints to flood the space left by the former’s negative positioning.

Short-term loss, long-term gain?

Upon his arrival, Antonio Conte brought with him a reputation to act as a temporary fix focusing on short term gain as seen in his time at both Chelsea and Inter.

Although, if he is to achieve success with his current club, he will no doubt have to buck this trend.

“It is inevitable that in January it is very difficult to get two players like Bentancur and Kulusevski to sign who, I repeat, are the ideal prospects for Tottenham,” Conte added in regard to his expectations in the capital.

"“Because Tottenham is looking for young players, players to be developed, not ready players. That is the issue.”"

"“The vision, the philosophy of the club is this. It is inevitable that if you want to grow faster and if you want to be competitive more quickly you need players with a lot of experience because they also lead to an increase in experience in your team. But then again, the vision of the club I realised is this and will continue to be this. For this reason it will take a lot of patience.”"

His latest comments can act as reassurance for Spurs supporters, who have likely attached any last remains of optimism to Antonio Conte — not only on the pitch but off it — amid rumours the 52-year-old is their only hope in retaining talisman Harry Kane.