What is the team news?
Emerson didn't have training session today because he had a kick. Today he wasn’t available for the training session. Tomorrow morning we will try him to see if he is available at least for the bench at least to help us. Another situation we have to monitor is about Perisic. He had training session today but tomorrow for sure I want to speak to him to understand if also he is available for the bench. And then we have some injuries. Lloris out, Bissouma out, Bentancur out, Sessegnon out.
Are you and the board on the same page and will you be the manager next season?
Yeah but honestly in every interview you ask me the same question and I have to always give you the same answer. I think I say it. The club knows very well which is the situation, I speak every day with Paratici and Paratici knows very well and also I have a good relationship with the chairman. They know very well which is the situation. I repeat my future now is not important. The most important thing is the club, to try to push the players until the end and to finish in the best possible way. I think this is the most important thing.
READ MORE: Antonio Conte's future, Tottenham's Ten Hag regret, the Pochettino decision and reckless Romero
There were fans chanting Pochettino, players reportedly in talks with him, Richarlison was critical of you. When you see the players do you feel you have backing of players and supporters?
First of all I watched the interview of Richarlison and he didn’t criticise me. He said my season is (swears) and he is right because his season is no good. Because he had a lot of injuries. He started well with us, he then had injury in the Champions League and then he went to World Cup and he had another serious injury. He came back and stayed one month out. Then another injury.
He scored zero goals with us, only two goals in Champions League and I think the guy was really honest to tell that his season is not good. His season and our season has still not finished and he has time to recover. If he deserves to play, I give him opportunity otherwise we will play another player.
Then if you ask me for rest of interview I think that the guy understood very well that he made mistake because when you speak with ‘I, I and I’, not with us, it means you are thinking only about yourself and you are selfish.
For this reason I analysed this situation and to repeat to my players that if we want to build something important, if you want to try to fight for something important, if we want to fight to be competitive and to win a trophy, you have to speak with ‘we’ and not with ‘I”. Because if we speak ‘I, I and I’, it means that you are only thinking only about yourself and not the others and club.
The guy understood very well and he apologised and for me it was good because I had an opportunity to clarify for another time the importance of the spirit of the team. Because the pitch is important, tactics are important, but the spirit and desire to fight and the fire in your eyes is too much important than the other situation. It was important for me to underline again this situation to my players because for sure in this aspect we have to improve, to improve a lot, to be more team, and to show more spirit positive to help each other especially in negative moments.
I have good guys but sometimes it is not enough to be a good guy. Sometimes you have to show right desire, sacrifice to yourself to fight to win the game, to win the duals, yeah to be nasty and yeah I think sometimes we are a bit soft.
But I am the coach and the first responsible about this situation when it happen because doesn't happen every time but I have to improve the team and also I have to improve the spirit of my team. It always happen in the past and I hope to happen also here.
You said the season is not over, do you still believe you can get a top four finish?
You know we have to try to do our best. Then for this reason we have to try to believe every day in what we do. I repeat it will be very important to have the desire and we know that it will be really difficult. To reach place in Champions League in Premier League is not simple. For us it is like to win the Premier League in this moment. Last season we made this achievement. I think this season it will be more difficult but I have been repeating this for a long time.
This is not the first time but we want to fight. We don't want to give up and if I see someone try to give up, I am the first to be strong. We have to fight until the end, fight until the end and then we see what happens. This is my spirit and I transfer my spirit to my players. If I am not able to transfer my spirit to my players, it means I fail.
You've failed to score in three games and Danjuma has not featured much, are we likely to see him this weekend?
Yeah about Arnaut, for sure I am sorry. I am sorry for him because he arrived in the transfer market in January and the club wanted to sign on loan this player. For sure he has good characteristics, good quality and maybe he has not specific characteristics to be a number 10. Maybe he is more a second striker or a winger, but for sure I am appreciating a lot his desire, his will in every training (session). Against Milan, if we don't have that red card to Romero, he was coming to try to play with a 4-2-4. I have to try to find always the best solution.
You said earlier about your future....
Again my future? Again my future?
It's important though. Do you want to stay? Is that your long-term goal to stay here? Can you tell the fans that?
Yeah but in this moment I think the most important thing is to be focused on the league. You know which is my opinion, you know which is my desire and I say to you a lot of time during the press conference that the situation I have found and we are far to aspire to be competitive to fight to win. I am repeating this for a long time. I say it we need time, we need patience. I see that here the environment [the fans] has no patience, no patience or maybe the environment doesn't want to understand the reality. If no one wants to understand this and for sure I don't speak about my future because the club knows very well which is my situation, which is my thoughts.
But if I have to become (for) the people to take as a target? No. I am not this person. You understand? The reality is this. We need time and patience. I understood that here the patience is finished for the fans, for the environment and then we will see what happens in the future. I repeat I am not so stupid to kill myself. For sure this has to be clear. If you ask me now are you ready now to die for this club? Yes. Until the end I am ready to die for this club and then we will see because I am not so stupid to continue to kill myself.
You've won everywhere but you've become another manager unable to win a trophy at Spurs, what makes it so hard to win trophies here?
You know with the club we signed a contract, a strange contract - one-year-and-a-half. Usually you sign a contract for three years but I think it was for the club and also for myself to see the situation.
For the club to understand my personality, my capacity as a coach and for me from my side it was also the same. To understand if we were on the same page and if we wanted to do something important.
Now after one year and a half, the club knows me, I know the club and it is clear this situation. For this reason I repeat, we have to finish the season and then we will see. The club knows very well what are my thoughts. I am ready to die for this club until the end of the season. Then if you ask me, we'll make the decision with the club and the club knows very well my thoughts. I hope, I hope please until the end I don't want to speak about my future, because I think it would be very difficult to be more clear than today.
Cristian Romero was sent off again and he's picking up so many yellow cards, is this the last part of his game than needs to be improved to make him a top defender?
We are talking about a really, really good player. I said to him to become a top, top player and he has all the possibility to be a top, top defender, he has to control much better himself.
Especially for a central defender, but for all players, to receive a yellow card after 15 or 20 minutes and you stay in every moment in danger - you and the team. For sure I know that he understood and Cristian, he wants to improve in this aspect. If he is able to improve in this aspect, we are talking about a really, really top defender, despite his young age.
He's really strong and improved a lot but there is this side he has to improve. I'm his coach and it's my job to improve my players and he has to improve this aspect to become complete, a complete player at a big, big level.
When you made the substitution after the red card, the fans booed as you were bringing on Davinson Sanchez. What did you make of the reaction to the change?
But was the boo for Sanchez or for the substitution?
I got the impression it was for the substitution as they wanted to see more attacking players on the pitch to go for the goal.
(Laughs) But we had three strikers. We continue to stay with three strikers. Sonny, Kane and Richarlison and then we put Pedro Porro and we played with a 3-4-3 usually and without one player we played a 3-3-3 or 3-2-4 but do you think that if you win the game only because you play with a striker?
You have to find in every moment to risk but at the same time don't lose the balance if you want to keep one chance and then we had the chance, but then I repeat if you think in that moment we can play with four strikers? We can do 2-2-4 against Milan and the counter-attack and the space?
But I repeat that I think I do my job and everyone has to do their job. (Chuckles) I think I have a career behind of me and the experience to try to make the best decision and then I repeat you can accept or not, but the reality is that we risk to score to draw but also if you score one goal, you go to play 30 minutes with four strikers no? I repeat this is okay but the fans, I understand the fans, but I am the coach, I have to always try to find the best solution for the team and at that time it was the best solution.
Would you sack Conte now? Have your say below
READ NEXT:
- Tottenham player ratings vs AC Milan: Reckless Romero and Son, Kane, Kulusevski and Perisic poor
- Angry Conte, Son and Kulusevski provide same answer - 5 things spotted in Tottenham vs AC Milan
- Tottenham fans make Antonio Conte and Daniel Levy feelings clear with Mauricio Pochettino call
- Spence frustrates Guendouzi, Doherty reunion, Udogie and Ndombele impact - Tottenham loan latest
- Tottenham told clever £50m transfer will stop Harry Kane from leaving amid contract dilemma
