Darren Bent has claimed that Antonio Conte is a ‘rare’ manager who can afford to be more defensive-minded because he knows Tottenham Hotspur have the ‘X-Factor’ up top, as he told Premier League Productions.
Tottenham have only lost two games in all competitions this season and Bent shared how they can ‘hurt’ any team whenever they want.
Over the weekend, Spurs didn’t exactly put on an attacking masterclass against Brighton and they will probably be like that for most of the season – but they got the job done, secured the three points and the clean sheet.
That’s what Conte is an expert at, he has a great knack to get the absolute best at what is put on the table for the trophy-laden coach.
If he is able to do just that in north London, then there is no reason why Champions League football shouldn’t be secured again, alongside a trophy.
Even though there has been some noise about Conte’s style, Bent shared how the man in Tottenham’s dugout is in a unique situation.
“It’s like they know they have that X-Factor at the top of the pitch, then Antonio Conte can afford to be a little bit more defensive-minded,” said Bent.
“He knows they can get the goal, shut up shop and then make it really difficult. He is one of them rare managers where he can be, it looks negative, but when you have players who can hurt any team and at any given moment, then it’s okay.”
CONTE ALWAYS DELIVERS
That was said of Jose Mourinho, but if it wasn’t for Daniel Levy pulling the trigger one week before a League Cup final, then they probably would have had a trophy in their cabinet.
Both managers might not be the cup of tea for some, but one thing is for sure, they get the job done.
Whilst Levy clearly wasn’t sure about Mourinho, even though he replaced the now-Roma coach with Mauricio Pochettino, he certainly has faith in Conte.
That’s proven by the fact that he backed him during the 2022 summer transfer market, including breaking club-record transfers for players who initially went in as back-up options.
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