Tottenham manager Antonio Conte said he could be sacked before the end of the season after the club's faltering campaign took another disappointing turn with an uninspired exit from the Champions League on Wednesday night.
Aiming to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the last-16 first leg against AC Milan, Spurs were held to a goalless draw at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and rarely threatened to pull themselves back into the tie, producing just two shots on target. The hosts' attempts to progress were dealt a further setback with 12 minutes remaining when defender Cristian Romero was sent off for a second yellow card.
Conte, who has been recovering from gallbladder surgery, returned to the touchline for the first time since the first leg in Milan last month, and after an FA Cup defeat away to Sheffield United and a Premier League loss at Wolves ahead of Wednesday night's game, the Italian admitted his time at the club could come to an end sooner rather than later.
“I’m under contract at Tottenham, then we will decide at the end of the season with the club,” Conte said.
“My contract expires in June, we will see – they might sack me even before the end of the season. Perhaps the expectations were higher and they may be disappointed? What matters for a coach is trying to work and raise the bar. This year we are struggling to raise the bar.”
Following elimination from the FA Cup and Champions League in the same week, Tottenham now look set for a 15th successive season without silverware. Spurs are still fourth in the Premier League and hold hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League, although fifth-placed Liverpool's return to form makes the Reds favourites for a coveted top-four place. Should Liverpool and Newcastle, in sixth, win their games in hand Tottenham will slip out of the top four.
Tottenham v AC Milan player ratings
-
TOTTENHAM PLAYER RATINGS: Fraser Forster, 6 – Untested for the most part in what turned into a pretty drab affair, although he kept his side in the tie just after the break with a big save on Diaz. EPA -
Cristian Romero, 2 – Lacked discipline. Picked up an avoidable booking when he opted to stop Leao in his tracks with brute force. He escaped without further punishment when he cynically fouled Diaz but saw red after clattering Hernandez. Getty -
Clement Lenglet, 6 – Became the second man to rule himself out of the next round for a stray elbow into the back of Giroud’s head, although in the end it didn’t matter. A clean sheet against a decent side, but Milan barely had to leave second gear. Getty -
Ben Davies, 5 – A couple of important interceptions from the Welshman, but he also put the ball straight out of play after miscontrolling Maignan’s punt forward. If anything summed up the evening, it was probably that. AP -
Emerson Royal, 7 – Had Maignan scrambling when his deflected strike span towards the corner of the goal, but Tomori had taken the sting out of the shot. Took the ball off the head of Giroud with a vital flick on at the back post. Reuters -
Oliver Skipp, 4 – Escaped an early yellow card for wrestling Leao who was looking to race away for the first time. Failed to inject any creativity on a dismal night for Spurs. Getty -
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, 4 –Like Skipp, he failed to produce a spark to get Spurs ticking in the middle in a passive performance. With that said, he tested Maignan for the first time with a powerful effort. Getty -
Ivan Perisic, 4 – A sluggish performance from the Croatian who allowed Milan to recycle the ball after a poor cross stayed in play, and failed to prevent a well-worked set-piece from reaching Messias at the far post as the latter fired wide. EPA -
Dejan Kulusevski, 5 – A disappointing first half that started brightly when he neatly turned the ball around the corner for Perisic but fizzled out. Provided a couple of teasing deliveries in a better second-half display, but he was still nowhere near his best. Getty -
Son Heung-min, 4 – A quiet night from the usually tireless South Korea star, who won his side a corner with a deflected strike but offered little else. Admittedly he didn’t have much service to feed off, and he almost set up a dramatic equaliser when he found Kane late on. Getty -
Harry Kane, 6 –. Opened Milan up for the first time when he charged forward and laid the ball off for Kulusevski. He found chances hard to come by after that, although he almost snatched an underserved lifeline when his stoppage-time header was brilliantly saved. Getty -
Pedro Porro (Perisic 53'), 7 – Had a chance to make an almost instant impact, but he hit a poor free-kick straight into the wall from a promising area. He was full of energy in a decent display and he thwarted Tonali with a huge block. Getty -
Davinson Sanchez (Kulusevski 53'), 6 – Replaced Kulusevski to a chorus of boos, which probably wasn’t how it wanted to mark his 200th appearance for Spurs. EPA -
Richarlison (Emerson 69'), 4 – Should have been booked for checking Maignan and then grabbing the goalkeeper by the throat. Petulant behaviour when Spurs had a job to do. Reuters -
AC MILAN PLAYER RATINGS: Mike Maignan, 8 – Untroubled by a couple of deflected strikes from Emerson and Kane in the first half. Produce a late wonder-save to deny the latter and ensure Milan progressed, but it was an otherwise quiet night for the Milan goalkeeper. Getty -
Pierre Kalulu, 7 – Halted a promising Spurs counter with a calculated sliding challenge as the game entered the home straight and he got a vital connection on a dangerous cross with a white shirt lurking behind him. Reuters -
Malick Thiaw, 7 – Untroubled for most of the night despite rising Tottenham pressure after the break. Effectively broke up the play when he took out Richarlison who was looking to play in Son and Milan escaped unscathed. AFP -
Fikayo Tomori, 8 – Solid and reliable. Got an important body in the way of Emerson’s strike which allowed Maignan to smother, and he did a superb job on Kane to significantly blunt the Spurs attack. Getty -
Junior Messias, 6 – Dragged a big chance horribly wide after a well-crafted move that caught Spurs napping, and he saw another opportunity go begging when he cut inside nicely only to blast miles over Forster’s crossbar. AFP -
Rade Krunic, 6 – Had Milan cantering up the field before he was halted by Skipp as Milan started positively. Nullified the Tottenham midfield in a scrappy encounter. AFP -
Sandro Tonali, 6 – Picked out Giroud with a lovely lofted ball over the top, but the forward’s overhead kick attempt was all wrong and failed to match the gloss of Tonali’s pass. Wasted a huge opportunity when he fired straight into Porro. AP -
Theo Hernandez, 8 – Led by example. Scrapped for everything and made life difficult for the Spurs midfielders, although he wasted an early chance to pile on the pressure when his free-kick was far too deep. AFP -
Brahim Diaz, 8 – Lively. Came to life after the break when he danced into the penalty area and forced a smart save from Forster, before winning a free-kick in a dangerous area after nutmegging Emerson. Getty -
Rafael Leao, 7 – Always looked to be a dangerous outlet. Scuffed his best effort after the break after great work from Diaz but the latter should have scored after brilliant work from Leao moments later. Getty -
Olivier Giroud, 6 – The former Arsenal and Chelsea man will have been hungry for a goal given the opposition. He forced Forster into action with an instinctive volley after good work from Leao, but otherwise he struggled for clear-cut chances. EPA -
SUBS: Alexis Saelemaekers (Messias 56'), 6 – A decent outing from the substitute who made himself busy in the Milan midfield. AP -
Ismael Bennacer (Diaz 81'), NR – Tested the gloves of Forster from distance as the minutes trickled down. Getty -
Divock Origi (Giroud 81'), NR – The former Liverpool man broke Spurs' hearts in the Champions League final four years ago, and he almost did so again when his 94th-minute effort hammered the post. AP -
Ante Rebic (Leao 89'), NR – A brief cameo for the experienced winger. Getty
It marks a stark contrast from Conte's first seven months in charge when, after being appointed in November 2021, he led Spurs from eighth in the Premier League table to a top-four finish.
“I’m really sorry for the fans but we cannot get the win,” Conte said. “It’s important to know this or hope for a miracle that one day a trophy comes to us … we have to build and have patience. I understand the fans don’t have patience because for a long time Tottenham have not been winning, but what I can promise is that we continue to work and try to improve.
“In this moment we don’t have a solid foundation to be competitive to fight to win, in my opinion. We tried to work and understand the right players to create a foundation, and in the market to find a resolution to improve, but at the moment the club knows my thoughts.
“I have a great relationship with my chairman but that doesn’t mean I don’t tell them what my vision is. We will see. We have to finish the season. We have a contract until June. I’m happy to work in Tottenham but at the end I will make a decision. The club knows my vision and my thoughts about the situation.”
While issues persist at Tottenham, progress to the quarter-finals provides a boost to Milan, who have seen their Serie A title defence collapse. Milan sit fifth in the league table, 18 points behind runaway leaders Napoli.
"I like to think there’s nothing impossible in sport," Milan manager Stefano Pioli said. "Clearly, only the best in Europe remain, and each round gets more difficult, but I am sure that all the European experiences, especially the negative ones – help us step up a level.
"Now we must go into the quarter-final with confidence and belief."
