Jason Cundy has torn into Antonio Conte on talkSPORT after Tottenham Hotspur lost away to Middlesbrough in the FA Cup as the Italian looks ‘lost’ and ‘beaten’ on the touchline.
Spurs face another trophyless campaign without a drastic twist in the Premier League. They sit seventh in the table after 25 games with a 24-point gap to Manchester City. They also exited the Carabao Cup in the semis and Europa Conference League in the group stage.
Champions League qualification is now the target in north London as they fight Manchester United, West Ham, Arsenal and Wolves. Seven-points separate the five sides, although the Gunners have three games in hand, Tottenham two and Wolves one in the top-four race.
Consistency issues since the end of January have been a major hindrance to Spurs’ bid for a Champions League berth. Spurs have only won two of their last six top-flight games, after winning six of Conte’s first nine in charge. Huge lows have also followed big wins.
Tottenham stunned Man City by wining 3-2 at the Etihad last month, despite travelling on the back of three-straight defeats. Yet Spurs followed the big result by losing at relegation-threatened Burnley. They then bounced back to beat Leeds, only to lose to Middlesbrough.
Cundy feels ‘lost’ Conte’s reputation is ‘getting damaged’ at Tottenham
Former Tottenham defender Cundy now questions if Conte is doing enough to address the issues at Spurs. He also queries the Italian’s attitude and demeanour in the dugout, having watched his side fail to beat a Championship side in Middlesbrough following extra-time.
“Is Antonio Conte doing enough right now, is he? He’s not! Everyone at Spurs, they’re all beaten,” Cundy said. “Manage! You’re paid to manage so manage. He looks defeated, he looks crushed – every time I look at Antonio Conte, he looks like he wants to go to bed!
“Conte has gone from being one of the most sought-after managers and within three-months, his reputation is getting damaged. I bigged him up when he joined Spurs.
“I felt that Spurs were going to move in the right direction, but I didn’t see this, not under Antonio Conte. You could tell at that point he was struggling… He looked lost on the touchlines again, staring into space – just staring.”
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