(Football news) Tottenham Hotspur have announced that Antonio Conte will no longer be the manager by mutual consent with assistant Cristian Stellini taking over as head coach while Ryan Mason will be assistant manager until the end of the season. The Italian manager was in-charge of Tottenham for 16 months but had an angry outburst following his team’s 3-3 draw against Southampton despite having a 3-1 lead. The club has no chance of winning silverware this season and top four is looking increasingly unlikely based on recent performances.
A statement released by Tottenham read “We can announce that Head Coach Antonio Conte has left the Club by mutual agreement. We achieved Champions League qualification in Antonio’s first season at the Club. We thank Antonio for his contribution and wish him well for the future.” Club chairman Daniel Levy said “We have 10 Premier League games remaining and we have a fight on our hands for a Champions League place. We all need to pull together. Everyone has to step up to ensure the highest possible finish for our Club and amazing, loyal supporters.”
Conte’s contract was set to expire at the end of the 2023 season and speaking after the 3-3 draw he said “I’m not used to seeing this type of situation. I see a lot of selfish players and I don’t see a team. We are 11 players that go into the pitch. I see selfish players, I see players that don’t want to help each other and don’t put their heart [in].”
When asked about his team’s collapse against Southampton, Conte said “Because they are used to it here, they are used to it. They don’t play for something important. 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. Twenty years there is the owner and they never won something – but why? The fault is only for the club, or for every manager that stays here.”
Despite Conte’s departure, it’s fair to say that the Tottenham hierarchy need to take a long look into the mirror. Under Daniel Levy, four managers have been sacked in four years with the Italian joining Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo as high profile candidates who have failed to be successful at the club. It will be for the second time in 23 months that a caretaker manager will be appointed and while Antonio Conte’s timing might not be perfect, a lot of what he said during the press conference is true. The club are now being linked to former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann, who was recently sacked by the German champions in favor of Thomas Tuchel.
Also read: Why did Bayern Munich decide to sack Julian Nagelsmann?
