Tottenham Hotspur head coach Antonio Conte is hoping supporters can recreate the same atmosphere in the north London derby for Sunday’s clash with Burnley. Spurs blew the top four race wide open with a 3-0 win over Arsenal on Thursday night, which makes this weekend’s home match with the Clarets equally as important.
Conte’s side can move two points ahead of Arsenal before the Gunners make the Monday night trip to Newcastle United. But the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is equally as important for Burnley, as they can take a giant step towards safety with a win before Leeds United host Brighton at Elland Road.
The Clarets sit level on points with Leeds having played a game less, but boast a far superior goal difference, which could be the deciding factor at the end of the season. But despite Burnley’s added incentive after Leeds’ loss to Chelsea on Wednesday, they will come up against a Spurs side full of confidence ahead of their final two games of the season.
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Speaking in his post-match press conference following the win over Arsenal, Conte is eager to avoid a repeat of the ‘angering’ defeat to Burnley earlier in the season and has therefore called on his supporters to generate another raucous atmosphere.
Via quotes from Football London, he said: “We are one point less than Arsenal. There are two games to go. I think we have an important game against Burnley. We lost against Burnley and you know very well that after this game it made me very, very angry.
“I think it was a good step for me, for my players, for the club to understand what I wanted of my players and now to stay in this position I think at that time, none of us could think that two games to we would have the possibility to play for a place in the Champions League.
“It's not easy because you have to pay great attention to find a good balance. If you push too much your players, you risk an opposite answer. Also in this aspect, in six months and a half we worked step by step.
“Also for me it was important to know my players much better and them to know me much better, and understand sometimes when I'm angry, why I'm angry. Don't forget the defeat against Burnley made me very angry, if you remember.
“But now, they're improving in many aspects. Not only on the pitch but mentally they are becoming strong. But now we're talking to tell a lot of positive things but on Sunday we have to win. So I ask to our fans to recreate this atmosphere because tonight it was amazing. The fans scored one goal. We scored two and one for our fans.
“It'll be important on Sunday to stay together and create again this atmosphere. We need to play this game all together because it won't be easy. It'll be a sporting war, clearly.”
