Top-four finish like a title win for Spurs, says Conte

[mawspurs]

A Premier League top four finish for Tottenham Hotspur this season would be like winning the title, manager Antonio Conte said on Saturday after his team bounced back from their midweek Champions League exit with a 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest.

“For us to finish in the top four is like winning the Premier League,” said Conte, who led Tottenham to a fourth-placed finish last season. “It happened last season, and I spoke about it being a miracle.

“This season it will be much more difficult, there are many teams involved and in this moment there is only one place available.”

“Liverpool is a competitor in this race. Newcastle is a different Newcastle to the past, they have invested a lot of money and they have a strong team,” Conte said.

“I don’t consider Chelsea outside because Chelsea has a possibility to win the last 11 or 12 games in a row because the squad is really, really strong.

“A top club looks to themselves. We have to be focused on our path and to try to do our best until the end of the season and then we see which is the position we are able to achieve.”

Source: Malay Mail

 

[ero1x]

Some would like to see him gone now but we’d be foolish to sack a manager whilst sitting 4th with a six point lead over the team below us.
Conte should stay until the end of the season if we’re still in contention for a CL place, and rightly so.

 

[Phantom]

Not his biggest fan at the moment and particularly annoyed with the contract situation but I would prefer we show a bit more patience...IF he is showing willing to sign a new contract and if we are willing to buy the players he wants/needs. If we are not prepared to do that then we should get a manager who is more flexible and plays more pleasing football.

 

[Impspur1]

Not sure how I feel about this narrative from AC. We have been in CL consistently over the past few seasons and we’re hardly coming from Mid table obscurity. Of course realism is important but I do think we are better than he seems to think gives us credit for.

 

[Metalhead]

Not his biggest fan at the moment and particularly annoyed with the contract situation but I would prefer we show a bit more patience...IF he is showing willing to sign a new contract and if we are willing to buy the players he wants/needs. If we are not prepared to do that then we should get a manager who is more flexible and plays more pleasing football.

Even if he gets us to the end of the season and we do finish 4th, that would provide a great springboard for another coach.

 

[Clockspur]

I think he is going to get a huge whack from us in the way of a bonus if we finish top 4. Let him guide us there - weirdly I fully expect him to pull that off now we’re down to one game a week.

However we need to get rid in the summer - I would prefer Enic and Levy to go but it looks very unlikely. Next manager has to take cups seriously.

 

[joey.leone]

Not sure how I feel about this narrative from AC. We have been in CL consistently over the past few seasons and we’re hardly coming from Mid table obscurity. Of course realism is important but I do think we are better than he seems to think gives us credit for.

Maybe he's just toeing the company line. Top 4 is like a title win for our club because that is seemingly the objective set for our managers.

 

[marion52]

He sounds like Wenger, he treated top four like a cup win didn’t he?

 

[onthetwo]

Could someone point out to him next time that the team finishing immediately behind us last year are doing a pretty good job at going from outside the Top-4 to leading the table?
Tired of this bullshit now……

 

[Impspur1]

Maybe he's just toeing the company line. Top 4 is like a title win for our club because that is seemingly the objective set for our managers.

Can’t argue with that

 

[cider spurs]

Could someone point out to him next time that the team finishing immediately behind us last year are doing a pretty good job at going from outside the Top-4 to leading the table?
Tired of this bullshit now……

That project is further down the line than our current one.

That's not to say I wholly agree with his comments, but I believe he'd aspire to win the league at the start of every season.

 

[onthetwo]

That project is further down the line than our current one.

That's not to say I wholly agree with his comments, but I believe he'd aspire to win the league at the start of every season.

You sure you thought that at the start of this season (that the Arsenal project was ahead of ours?) Otherwise you’re just using hindsight to defend our plight, just as Conte would!

 

[BENNO]

Could someone point out to him next time that the team finishing immediately behind us last year are doing a pretty good job at going from outside the Top-4 to leading the table?
Tired of this bullshit now……

Spot on. I'm surprised how forgiving some of the replies here have been, the bloke should have been sacked Wednesday evening (that's if anyone could find him as he appears to have disappeared up his own backside). Talks absolute nonsense in press conferences and now blames the fans for their lack of patience !

I'd happily bet on Ryan Mason to be able to gain just as many, if not more points than Conte could to the end of the season. Don't be fooled by that result yesterday, Forest were garbage first half having decided to play with no midfield. On top of that a lot of players played with a far greater degree of effort than of late, which i put down to their own self esteem rather than anything Conte has done.

 

[14/04/91]

I wonder whether the Liverpool result gave them a shot in the arm yesterday; they seemed to have a spring in their step from minute one.

 

[cider spurs]

You sure you thought that at the start of this season (that the Arsenal project was ahead of ours?) Otherwise you’re just using hindsight to defend our plight, just as Conte would!

Nope, didn't think they would be where they are now, but I'm of the belief that at seasons start, Arteta was aspiring to win the league, Conte the same.

That's not hindsight, that's a reality.

As for them further along in their project, yep. Conte has 3 transfer windows to shape his team, Arteta 7.

 

[Japhet]

Not his biggest fan at the moment and particularly annoyed with the contract situation but I would prefer we show a bit more patience...IF he is showing willing to sign a new contract and if we are willing to buy the players he wants/needs. If we are not prepared to do that then we should get a manager who is more flexible and plays more pleasing football.

I don't mind him staying til the end of the season but I don't want him to get another contract. The football is terrible to watch most of the time and he'll want huge money invested in this same flawed system. I want a different coach with more flexibility and less melodrama who uses the squad at his disposal. We've been incredibly lucky that Skipp has slotted in so seamlessly with Bentancur out, but Conte would never have used him if not in a crisis. Same with Sarr. Have had enough of Conte and his stubbornness.

 

[parj]

Top 4 for us is like winning the league? He can fcuk off.

 

[onthetwo]

Nope, didn't think they would be where they are now, but I'm of the belief that at seasons start, Arteta was aspiring to win the league, Conte the same.

That's not hindsight, that's a reality.

As for them further along in their project, yep. Conte has 3 transfer windows to shape his team, Arteta 7.

So from aspiring to win the league to being told that finishing 4th is Herculean for our team….that’s politics not leadership.

 

[onthetwo]

Not sure how I feel about this narrative from AC. We have been in CL consistently over the past few seasons and we’re hardly coming from Mid table obscurity. Of course realism is important but I do think we are better than he seems to think gives us credit for.

Someone pointed out that our CL knockout record (Before Conte came along) is a lot better than his So spare us the lectures on not getting above our station as supporters!

 

[LSUY]

Some would like to see him gone now but we’d be foolish to sack a manager whilst sitting 4th with a six point lead over the team below us.
Conte should stay until the end of the season if we’re still in contention for a CL place, and rightly so.

Sitting 4th with a seven point lead over a team that has 3 games in hand. Everyone's looking at Liverpool when Newcastle is the bigger risk.

He sounds like Wenger, he treated top four like a cup win didn’t he?

Nah. Wenger won the FA Cup multiple times during that period.