Antonio Conte returns for a defining night in the Champions League admitting that he underestimated his health scare.
Conte flew back into London on Sunday having been ordered by his doctors to take extra time off in his recovery from emergency gallbladder surgery. There could not be a bigger test because Tottenham must turn around a 1-0 deficit from the first leg against Italian champions AC Milan to progress into the quarter-finals.
Conte looks almost certain to leave Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when his contract expires this summer with Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel the two leading candidates to succeed him. But the Italian’s legacy will depend on the next few weeks, whether Tottenham get back into the top four and, in particular, the return leg of their last-16 tie.
If Conte, on £15million per year, gets them into the top four in consecutive seasons, then that surely must be viewed as mission accomplished. But victory over Milan would transform the mood.
Conte was last in the dugout for the first game in the San Siro in February - returning less than two weeks after surgery - and admits that he rushed back too soon and quickly discovered no one is immortal.
Conte said on Tuesday: “For sure, I underestimated the recovery after surgery. For my sense of responsibility, I wanted to come back early but I under-evaluated the surgery and maybe I over-evaluated my body and myself. But now I am well. I have recovered energy.
“I still have to recover weight but for the rest, I am okay. I feel good. I have a lot of energy. I will try to transfer my energy to my players because it’s an important game for us. They know this very well. I repeat – we want to create a fantastic atmosphere tomorrow and to try to go to the next round.”
Conte was on the other end of the phone, kept in touch via his laptop and went through torture from his home in Italy last week when Tottenham crashed out of the FA Cup at Sheffield United. Spurs rested Harry Kane against the Championship side in what subsequently looked a very bad move as the FA Cup was their last realistic chance of silverware, which only heightens the pressure for the Milan game.
Conte revealed that he actually wanted to come back for Saturday’s Premier League defeat at Wolves - only to be told by club medics that he was not ready before finally getting the green light.
“Honestly, I wanted to come back after the game against Sheffield United but the doctor stopped me and said: ‘Now, you have to listen to us and wait two more days. Then, on Sunday, you come back to London for the game against Milan,’ Conte recalled.
“For me, honestly, I wanted to come back early but in this case, I should respect the doctor and also Tottenham’s doctors because they were really worried after the game against Milan, the first leg. For this reason, I come back on Sunday. For sure, it wasn't a good result against Sheffield United. We had the possibility to go to the next round and try to fight for a trophy in the FA Cup this season. You know very well the importance of this trophy and you feel this trophy in England.”
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Conte had a warning for his players that they must learn to live with pressure as he also spelt out his ambition to lift a trophy at a club where they have not won anything since 2008. He added: “Maybe, if there is one thing that we have to try to improve, the whole environment here is to live with the pressure.
“To live with the pressure, it can mean sometimes to be a bit stressed, not always be at peace with yourself, but to stress yourself and to put pressure in a positive way. I think that in this aspect, we can improve a lot and the whole environment can improve a lot in this aspect.
“You know very well that for me this season represents success if we fight, if we fight to be competitive to win something. Yeah, I think this has to be our target. Tottenham as a club has to need this target every season, to fight for something important, to fight to win.”
