Antonio Conte introduced a couple of old friends to his post-match briefing on Tuesday.
They were Eugenio Fascetti and Carlo Mazzone, Italian coaches whom the Tottenham Hotspur manager played under in the 1980s. Conte’s Spurs had just lost to Championship Middlesbrough in the FA Cup, and, in a reflective mood, he rolled back the years to cite Fascetti and Mazzone for what they had taught him.
In the short time he has been in charge of Spurs, the Conte press conference has become a must-watch event.
Six days before the Boro defeat, after a 1-0 loss at Burnley, he made headlines by asking out loud if he was the right man for a Tottenham job he accepted only four months ago. “I came in to try to improve the situation, but maybe in this moment, I’m not good to improve the situation,” he said.
Following hard on the heels of an interview he gave to Sky Italia, criticising Spurs’s work in the January transfer window, it sounded like a clear signpost towards the exit door come the end of the season.
After the Cup elimination at Boro, though, he was contemplative, almost mild in his tone. Which was where Fascetti and Mazzone, admired Italian coaches but not superstars of the profession, came in.
Fascetti gave Conte his senior debut, at Bari, at 16; Mazzone coached him at the same club before Conte went on to build a career in the midfields of Juventus and the Italy national team.
“My old coaches in Italy, especially Fascetti and Mazzone, taught me that the coach sometimes has to use the carrot, sometimes the stick,” said Conte.
He went on to describe how he had used both tools, anger - the stick - and encouragement - the carrot - within the previous week. “After Burnley, I used the stick,” he explained. "And the result in the next game, against Leeds United? We won!"
Burnley vs Tottenham player ratings
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BURNLEY RATINGS: Nick Pope 6 - Left in the cold for much of the first half as Spurs failed to threaten, but did everything needed once they grew into the second half. Getty Images -
Connor Roberts 7 - The former Swansea man was both effective defensively and offensively, keeping Son and Sessegnon quiet. PA -
James Tarkowski 8 - Having missed Burnley’s last game, against Brighton, after testing positive for Covid-19, Sean Dyche reverted to his trusty defender, who was straight into the action to clear away Spurs’ advances into the box. Reuters -
Ben Mee 7 - The Burnley veteran headed his side into the lead and claimed his third goal of the season after beating Romero in the air. AFP -
Erik Pieters 7 - The 33-year-old left-back put in quite the shift dealing with Kulusevski, contributing a couple of good blocks and interceptions. AP -
Aaron Lennon 6 - A relatively quiet display by the former Spurs man with just a handful of passes throughout. Getty Images -
Jack Cork 7 - Great display by the midfielder who controlled play and kept Spurs from attacking in the first half. Made it difficult for Spurs to make things happen. Getty Images -
Josh Brownhill 6 - Chested down a cleared corner before hitting the ball on the volley, forcing Lloris into his first real save of the evening. Reuters -
Dwight McNeil 7 - Bright and lively in the opening stages and just as helpful dropping deep to dispossess Spurs. Delivered a beautiful ball for Mee to head into Lloris’ net. Getty Images -
Jay Rodriguez 6 - Returned to the starting line-up after collecting an assist against Brighton at the weekend. Will have been frustrated not to have found the net with the ball bouncing around the six-yard box. Reuters -
Wout Weghorst 7 - The tall target man was clearly happy to drop deep and use his muscle to hold up the ball, with the 29-year-old exhausted from his efforts. Getty Images -
SUB: Ashley Barnes (Weghorst, 87’) – N/R, A late change for the Clarets with Weghorst running out of fuel by the end. Getty Images -
TOTTENHAM RATINGS: Hugo Lloris 6 - The 35-year-old had to be quick off his feet with the testy conditions in Lancashire. He made easy work of claiming Brownhill’s first-half volley. Got low quickly to deny Rodriguez’s header in the second half with an instinctive save. Reuters -
Cristian Romero 6 - Outmuscled Weghorst as Burnley’s January signing charged into the box and was about to unleash the ball from his feet. Beaten in the air by Mee. Reuters -
Eric Dier 7 - Did well to get across and put an end to McNeil’s advances; he had weaved through several Spurs players before trying to get a shot away. AFP -
Ben Davies 6 - Forced Pope into an instinctive save when the ball fell to his feet in the second half. He was solid in defence. PA -
Emerson Royal 6 - The Brazilian was unable to keep his effort low and on target, after weaving past Burnley on the break. Brighter in the second half but taken off as Spurs grew into the game. Reuters -
Rodrigo Bentancur 6 - The former Juventus man ran off a nasty slip on a wet playing surface and did well to continue but was forced off at the break. Getty Images -
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg 6 - The Danish international struggled to make anything happen in a tough midfield battle against Burnley. Getty Images -
Ryan Sessegnon 5 - Made his third successive start at left wing-back after biding his time during a stop-start season, but was largely unable to make anything happen. AFP -
Dejan Kulusevski 6 - The Juventus loanee was part of much of Spurs’ attacking moves in the first half, although often wanted too much time. Curled a great ball just around the post in the second half. Reuters -
Son Heung-min 5 - Could have easily added an assist on the stroke of half-time but held onto the ball too long, seeing the opportunity fade as Burnley surrounded the Spurs man and pushed him wide. Much livelier after half-time. Getty Images -
Harry Kane 6 - After a frustrating first half, he nearly headed his team into the lead after the break when he connected with Son’s free-kick, only to be denied by the woodwork. Fired just wide when Romero disposed Burnley. Reuters -
SUB: Harry Winks (Bentancur, 46’) 6 - A half-time change for Spurs, and shot straight at England teammate Pope with an effort from the edge of the box. PA -
SUB: Lucas Moura (Royal, 65’) – 6 A tactical change as Spurs threatened in the second half but failed to keep his volley low in the closing minutes. PA -
SUB: Steven Bergwijn (Sessegnon, 78’) N/R - The Dutchman shot straight at Pope in the closing stages. Getty Images
“After Leeds? The carrot. Then we lost,” said Conte with a thin smile, referring to the 1-0 loss at Boro three days after a 4-0 win at Leeds. “The coach has to always try to find the best solution, [whether] you’re upset, frustrated or disappointed.”
Stick or carrot? It’s a choice Conte has to make with alarming frequency. Since the turn of the year, Spurs have lost seven and won six. In their last five Premier League matches, they have been defeated by Burnley, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Southampton and yet also beaten league-leaders and champions Manchester City.
They have exited two Cup competitions and one outcome of 19-year-old substitute Josh Coburn’s extra-time goal for Boro is that Tottenham will end a season, for the 14th campaign on the trot, without a trophy.
For Conte, that is a significant landmark. In the last decade of his managerial career, the very least he has achieved at the end of a club season is a silver medal. In three years coaching Juventus, he won three Serie A titles.
In two seasons at Chelsea, he won a Premier League and then the FA Cup. In two seasons at Internazionale, he reached a Europa League final and then won the Italian league. Granted, he took over at Tottenham 10 games into the current season after the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo, but the genuine signs of greater Spurs purpose and verve on his watch have not translated into sustained momentum.
Spurs were ninth in the Premier League when Conte joined and in contention for three possible Cups. They have since exited the Europa Conference League in the group phase, the League Cup at the semis and the FA Cup in its fifth round.
The pursuit of a top-four finish in the Premier League is now the sole target. With 13 games left, there is a five-point gap between their seventh place and Manchester United, who have played two matches more than Tottenham, in fourth.
Conte would back himself to make up that gap. Fascetti, who spotted Conte’s “will to win and intelligence” when he was still a schoolboy, and Mazzone would doubtless back him as well, and by the end of March, a month which includes fixtures at United and at home to fifth-placed West Ham, the target of fourth spot could look very achievable.
But this is not a Spurs side that Conte can yet trust. “Too many ups and downs,” as he put it, “If we want to become competitive, then we have to be a stable team.”
As he begins preparations for Monday’s meeting with Everton, the manager will again decide between stick and carrot. By the end of the season, the choice will be stick or twist. And Conte gives no strong impression he has yet decided one way or the other.
