Antonio Conte has opened up on his ‘philosophy’ after giving his first interview as the new manager of Tottenham.
Conte was appointed as the new manager of Tottenham on Tuesday following the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo, the former Chelsea boss returning to the Premier League at their London rivals.
The 52-year-old arrives with an impressive collection of silverware behind him, having won five top-flight league titles during spells at Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan.
Conte has described the role as a ‘great honour’ and admits he is relishing the chance to return to English football, outlining his determination to ‘repay the trust’ of chairman Daniel Levy.
“It’s a great pleasure, a great honour to become the Tottenham manager,” he told the Spurs website. “I think this is a great opportunity for me to come back in England in a club of top players and, for sure, it will be a pleasure to be Tottenham manager.
“I want to say that the club and Daniel Levy wanted me, strongly, and I think it has been, for me, an honour to accept this, to become manager, and now, for sure, I want to repay this trust.”
Conte hailed the facilities at Spurs as amongst the best in world football and says his ambition is to establish the side as one of Europe’s finest both on and off the pitch.
“I arrive in a situation at a top club where the stadium, the training ground are wonderful, and I think Tottenham is top in this aspect. I think I will be able to start to work to bring Tottenham on the pitch to the same level of the infrastructure. Tottenham, now outside, is really, really top.
“You see the training ground and you want to work. I’ve seen it today and wanted to start work alone! This type of situation pushes you and increases your desire to work and to do something important for the fans of this club.”
The Italian also opened up on his coaching philosophy and says he will look to play attractive football during his time in North London, issuing a promise to make the side competitive and with a ‘will to fight’.
“My coaching philosophy is very simple – to play good football and attractive football for our fans. With patience and to be a stable – not up and down.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: Antonio Conte. pic.twitter.com/8BICCuSZbS
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 3, 2021
“I think the fans deserve to have a team that are competitive with a will to fight. I will do everything to deserve their support.”
Conte discussed his motivation following a career of huge success, revealing his hope that Tottenham can become another ‘important part’ of a managerial career that has been decorated with silverware successes.
“This is the past and I live in the present. For Juventus, I played 13 years and I won a lot and everything with them. Then I came back and started as a coach to win nine titles in a row.
“It means we dominated and I started that and then stopped this cycle with Inter Milan. In the last two years with Inter, we had the second best attacking and best defence.
“My past and what I did with the previous teams and clubs, the past is important and I’m proud.
“For me, the new challenge is Tottenham. I want them to become an important part of my career as a football manager.”
