Conte vows he would ‘die’ for Spurs as pressure mounts

LONDON: Tottenham manager Antonio Conte has said he will be ‘dying for this club’ by the end of the season but admitted the deal he signed early in his tenure was strange.

Poor results and the Italian’s impending end of contract have led to speculation that he will leave the club soon.

But Conte demanded “time and patience” on the eve of his side’s game against Nottingham Forest.

“If you ask me now, am I ready to die for this club now? Yes,” he said on Friday. “Until the end I am willing to die for this club. But I’m not stupid enough to kill myself.”

Spurs, beaten in the FA Cup last week and knocked out of the Champions League by AC Milan on Wednesday, are still in the hunt for a place in the top four in the Premier League.

The former Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan boss said it was unusual to sign such a short deal when he joined in November 2021.

“You know, we signed a contract with the club, a strange contract, a year and a half,” he said. “Usually you sign for three years but I think it was for the club and for me to see the situation.

“For the club to understand my personality, my skills as a coach and for me – from my side it was the same. To understand if we were on the same page.

“Now after a year and a half the club knows me, I know the club and this situation is clear. We have to end the season and then we’ll see.

“The club knows my thoughts very well. I’m ready to die for this club until the end of the season.”

Conte also downplayed the extent of a rift with Richarlison, who complained about his lack of playing time in an interview this week.

The Spurs boss revealed the Brazilian striker, who joined from Everton last year, had apologized for the incident.

“He started well with us, then he had an injury and went to the World Cup and had another serious injury. He came back and stayed out for a month.

“He scored zero goals with us (in the Premier League), only two goals in the Champions League and the guy was really honest to say his season wasn’t good.”

Conte said he wants to foster a strong group mentality among his players.

“When we say ‘me, me and me’, we only think about himself. The guy understood very well and apologized, which is good because I had the opportunity to show the spirit of the team once again. “-AFP