Antonio Conte sends warning to Tottenham board ahead of final week of January transfer window

Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty I
Matt Verri23 January 2022

Antonio Conte once again warned the Tottenham board that there is no easy fix to the club’s problems, but insisted a start needed to be made if the gap to the top teams is to be closed any time soon.

Spurs fell to their defeat to Chelsea in less than weeks, as Hakim Ziyech and Thiago Silva gave the Blues a 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.

It’s the first loss Conte has suffered in the Premier League as Tottenham boss, and in comes as the final week of the January transfer window approaches.

The Italian made it clear that Spurs have to improve the quality of their squad if they want to compete with the best teams in the league.

“To be an important team, you need important players,” Conte told 5Live. “At the moment we are far away. It takes time. Years.”

Despite initially stating he didn’t want to discuss Tottenham’s transfer policy with the media, Conte was keen to reiterate the size of the task ahead and the decline in standards in recent years.

“The club know very well what I think and the time that we need to close the gap,” he said.

“There is not on transfer market to close the gap. In the last few years, this gap has become very, very big. Now it’s not simple to find a solution in a short time.

“We have four months to try to give everything. If we think we’ll solve the situation with the transfer market, it’s not a reality. We need many years.

“But for sure you have to start. And there is a point to start. In the last few years, the level of the squad decreased. It’s time to improve.”

Dele Alli and Tanguy Ndombele were both left out of the squad to face Chelsea, with it looking increasingly likely that the pair will leave Spurs this month.

But Conte gave no further information when questioned about Dele’s future, insisting that those discussions should only take place in private.

“I don’t want to comment about single players,” Conte said.

“There is the club to make the best decision on this aspect on players leaving and also to buy. There is a sporting director and also a chairman.

“They take the last decision, it is right to speak to them, not you.”

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