Tottenham Hotspur drop Antonio Conte after relations sour

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Tottenham Hotspur drop Antonio Conte after relations sour

Published: 27 Mar. 2023, 17:07 Updated: 27 Mar. 2023, 17:53

Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min with manager Antonio Conte after being substituted during a game against Nottingham Forest at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on March 11. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Antonio Conte’s expected departure from Tottenham Hotspur was confirmed on Sunday night when the club announced his exit by “mutual agreement” just over a week after he turned on his own players in a fiery press conference.

Conte will be replaced, at least temporarily, by his long-time assistant Cristian Stellini, who has worked with Conte in a number of coaching roles since 2011.

“We have 10 Premier League games remaining and we have a fight on our hands for a Champions League place,” Tottenham Chairman Daniel Levy said in a statement. “We all need to pull together. Everyone has to step up to ensure the highest possible finish for our Club and amazing, loyal supporters.”

Levy’s statement, which did not mention Conte once, stands in stark contrast to Jose Mourinho’s early departure in 2021, when the chairman praised the outgoing manager and said he would always have a place at the club.

Conte’s exit comes after a string of disappointing results led to increasing pressure to drop him before the end of the season. An outburst on March 18 undermined any goodwill he might have had left at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

“For me this is unacceptable,” Conte said after a 3-3 draw with Southampton. “We are winning 3-1, in control and concede two goals.

“I think it’s better to go into the problem, we are not a team. We are 11 players that go into the pitch. I see selfish players, players that don’t want to help each other and don’t put their heart [into it]. This season compared to last, now we are worse in this aspect. When you are not a team you cannot improve.”

Conte then rounded on the club itself.

“They don’t play for something important, yeah. They don’t want to play under pressure, they don’t want to play under stress.

“It is easy in this way. Tottenham’s story is this, 20 years there is the owner and they never won something but why? The fault is only for the club, or for every manager that stay here. I have seen the managers that Tottenham had on the bench. You risk to disrupt the figure of the manager and to protect the other situation in every moment. Until now I try to hide the situation but now, no, because I repeat I don’t want to see what I have seen today.”

That outburst essentially ended the Conte era at Spurs, with the news over the last week dominated not by whether he would go, but by who would replace him.

The club reportedly want Julian Nagelsmann, who was sacked by Bayern Munich on Friday, but will likely not make a move until the end of the season.

Stellini will be joined by Ryan Mason, also a former interim manager, as his assistant manager. The pair will face their first game at the helm of the club against Everton on the road on April 3.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]