Antonio Conte believes Tottenham are moving in the right direction after a busy summer transfer window but warned they cannot yet focus on closing the gap to Manchester City and Liverpool.
Spurs have made six major signings after a strong finish to last season saw them beat rivals Arsenal to fourth spot and Champions League qualification.
Tottenham begin the new campaign at home to Southampton on Saturday but the Italian tried to play down talk they could battle with Premier League champions City and Liverpool, who have both had their respective managers of Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp in position for more than six years.
“I think we’re going in the right direction but you know very well you need to have a bit of patience,” Conte said.
“We know that in England it is difficult to fight to win but we want to try to be competitive, to try to improve on last season and this is our target. If you ask me about City or Liverpool, my answer is we are talking about two of the best clubs in the world that are working with the same coaches.
“Now they are in my opinion in a position that is very difficult for the others to close the gap but we have to do this. Also because (to catch) a City and Liverpool, you have to spend £100 million for six players, they go and spend that for one player or two player £100m and this is the difference.
“You have to run behind and they stay in front of you but you know very well they deserve to stay there because they work very well to have the same coach and to back the coach, Klopp, Guardiola and (Thomas) Tuchel and they deserve this.
“To become a strong team you need to have stability and a vision. The idea has to be very clear and then you will see you go step by step and try to reduce this gap.”
After taking over at Tottenham in November, Conte experienced a number of highs and lows during his first few months in charge.
The 53-year-old was able to guide Spurs into the top four but demanded his ambition be matched at the end of the campaign.
Tottenham 2021/22 season ratings
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GOALKEEPERS: Hugo Lloris - 6. Signed a new contract in January that runs until June 2024. Has a tendency to play his defenders into trouble on occasion but shot-stopping is still elite level. Getty Images -
Pierluigi Gollini - 6. Lloris' understudy has performed capably during the cup competitions without giving any real indication he is ready to usurp the club captain any time soon. EPA -
DEFENDERS: Matt Doherty - 6. His season was brought to a premature end following an injury against Aston Villa in April. Shame, because he was actually beginning to show the kind of form that prompted Spurs to sign him from Wolves. Getty Images -
Sergio Reguilon 6 - Injuries have disrupted the Spanish wing-back's campaign and Ryan Sessegnon's emergence will make for an interesting battle between the two next term. PA -
Emerson Royal - 5. The Brazilian can often be found wanting defensively. Too much Serge Aurier and not enough Kieran Trippier. Reuters -
Ben Davies - 7. Deployed more often as part of a back three than full-back and the Welshman has excelled. Arguably his best season as a Tottenham player. Getty Images -
Cristian Romero - 8. Spurs' best signing of 2021/22. Romero loves the physical challenge and is comfortable enough on the ball to initiate and join in attacks. AFP -
Eric Dier - 8. Has finally nailed down his position as a central defender and like Davies, has flourished under Conte's management. Getty Images -
Davinson Sanchez - 6. Largely seen as cover for Romero, Davies and Dier. The Colombian has great recovery but that's often called upon because his positional sense is poor. Getty Images -
Joe Rodon - 4. The Welshman has found game time hard to come by under both Nuno and Conte this term. Would probably benefit from a loan spell away from the club. Getty Images -
Japhet Tanganga - 5. Lacks the cunning of Romero and is guilty of being overly aggressive in games. Ball distribution is not up to the level of his fellow defenders either. AFP -
Ryan Sessegnon - 6. Spurs fans are still waiting to see the best of Sessegnon but the former Fulham man has definitely improved on last season's effort. Will be interesting to see if he can really push Sergio Reguilon for the left-sided berth next term. Getty Images -
MIDFIELDERS: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg - 7. The Dane does the nuts and bolts of the job well but has looked to join in with attacks more under Conte. Spurs' Mr Dependable. Getty Images -
Oliver Skipp - 7. Arguably Spurs' best performer before injury curtailed his season. Shown he has the guile and gumption to perform in the Premier League. -
Harry Winks - 4. His ability to cover ground in defensive errors remains impressive but needs to do much more in possession. EPA -
Rodrigo Bentancur - 7. The Uruguayan joined in January from Juventus and is already a huge improvement on the man he replaced - Giovani Lo Celso - who was shipped out on loan to Villarreal. Bentancur can look pure silk at times. AFP -
Steven Bergwijn - 6. While he is unlikely to be a first-team regular, the Dutch international will forever hold cult status among Tottenham fans for his two injury-time goals against Leicester that turned a 2-1 defeat into a 3-2 win. AP Photo -
Lucas Moura - 6. Things just haven't quite clicked for the Brazilian. Few players work harder with the ball but Moura is just as likely to run down a blind alley as carve open a defence. Reuters -
Dejan Kulusevski - 8. The Swede has established himself as a fan favourite after hitting the ground running following a loan move from Juventus. Has added an extra attacking dimension to Spurs' play and signed off his campaign with two goals in the 5-0 demolition of Norwich. Getty Images -
Son Heung-min - 9. Another prolific season for the South Korean, whose haul of 23 league goals saw him share the Golden Boot with Liverpool's Mohamed Salah. Son has arguably become more important to Spurs than Kane. Getty Images -
Harry Kane - 8. Struggled for form after seeing a move to Manchester City fall through last summer. Once again formed a productive partnership with Son to finish the season with 17 league goals to fire Spurs to fourth place. Getty Images -
MANAGERS: Nuno Espirito Santo 4 - After starting the campaign with a treble of 1-0 wins to top the league, the wheels fell off spectacularly for the Portuguese and a run of four defeats in six games saw him sacked on November 1, 2021. PA -
Antonio Conte 8 - Spurs were ninth when the Italian took over in November and then seven points adrift of fourth when they lost to Burnley in February, but 10 wins from their next 14 games saw them overhaul Arsenal, Manchester United and West Ham to claim fourth spot. PA
The response was the permanent signings of Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison and Djed Spence while defender Clement Lenglet joined on loan from Barcelona.
But Conte is not getting ahead of himself when it comes to competing with City and Liverpool, adding: “Our target in this moment is not to close the gap.
“It’s to try to be better compared than last season. We know that last season we reached the fourth place and in my opinion it was a big, big achievement, especially as we finished the season with only 13 players.
“The first target, our target, the club target was to try to improve the squad in quality and numerically, because also with the numerical aspect of the squad it was not enough. It was our first target.
“Then you know very well that you can’t reach the best, the optimum in only one year or only after seven months. You know that you need a bit of patience but at the same time it’s important to have ambition to try to be competitive, to try to fight for the best.
“The ambition has to be the best. Then the reality can be different but our ambition, because this type of ambition can push me, push my players, the club, without to be presumptuous or arrogant I repeat, but this ambition has to push us to give 120 per cent in every day of our life in our work.”
Spurs will be without Oliver Skipp (heel) on Saturday and need to check on new signing Bissouma due to a minor hamstring issue. Fellow summer addition Richarlison is suspended.
