Europa: Tottenham not at their best yet, says Conte
Antonio Conte has admitted that it will “take time to bring Tottenham back” while slamming their “poor” display in an upset defeat to Mura.
Spurs slumped to their first loss under Conte in the Europa Conference League, losing 2-1 to Slovenian minnows Mura.
A stoppage-time winner from Amadej Marosa gave the hosts all three points, leaving Spurs’ new manager fuming on the touchline.
Conte expressed his disappointment in his post-match press conference, telling reporters: “This a bad loss for us. The performance was poor. We know we have a lot of work ahead of us. This is a difficult moment for us.
“We need patience to improve, to be good again. We were poor not only technically and tactically but also mentally. It will take time to bring Tottenham back.”
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The Spurs head coach added: “After three weeks I am starting to understand the situation. It is not simple. At this moment the level at Tottenham is not so high.”
Conte made nine changes to the team that beat Leeds 2-1 in the Premier League last weekend, but still included household names such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Tanguy Ndombele in his lineup.
Despite the array of talent on the pitch for Tottenham, Mura took the lead through Tommy Morvat after just 11 minutes.
The visitors’ task was made all the more difficult when Ryan Sessegnon was sent off for a second bookable offence just before the break, setting up a tense second half of action.
Spurs eventually found an equalizer when Kane chipped into the net from a tight angle with 18 minutes left, but Mura had the final say thanks to Marosa’s late deflected effort.
Conte’s men must now beat Rennes in their final group stage game to make certain of a place in the playoffs for the knockout stage.