Antonio Conte has launched a savage rant against his own team after Spurs were held to a 3-3 by Southampton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
With just 13 minutes of normal time remaining, the hosts led 3-1, thanks to goals from Pedro Porro, Harry Kane and Ivan Perisic.
However, just as the north London side looked set to bag three vital points in their quest to secure Champions League football next season, the Saints tore up the script.
Theo Walcott brought the visitors back into the game with a well-taken finish from Sekou Mara’s header.
James Ward-Prowse then levelled matters from the penalty spot to secure a crucial point for Ruben Selles’ relegation-threatened outfit.
The home faithful showered their side with boos at the final whistle – unable to quite believe how badly Conte’s men had capitulated.
Conte himself was just as furious as the fans and held nothing back with his post-match comments.
The 53-year-old Italian, who is widely expected to depart the club when his contract expires at the end of the season, ripped into his side in astonishing fashion, branding Spurs’ players as selfish.
“The problem is…we showed we’re not a team. We’re 11 players that go into the pitch, I see selfish players, players that don’t want to help each other. Don’t put heart,” Conte raged, per Dan Kilpatrick of the Evening Standard.
Conte didn’t stop there either, admitting he had been biting his tongue for quite some time.
“Until now I tried to hide the situation. We can fight for what in this period, with this attitude, this commitment? For what? 7th? 8th place?
He then went on to slam the club’s ownership for having been in charge for more than two decades without delivering a trophy.
“They’re used to it here. Don’t play for something important. They don’t want to play under pressure. They don’t want to play under stress. Tottenham’s story is this. 20 years there is the owner & they never won something. Why?
“Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. Try to protect them every time. Bah. Come on, come on. We are professionals. The club paid us a lot of money, the players receive money. I received money. Not to find excuses.”
You can check out Conte’s press conference rant as well as his full post-match interview with Sky Sports below.
Conte’s contract may have only a few short months left to run, but it’s increasingly difficult to see the Spurs hierarchy allowing him to see out the season if he continues to speak about the club in such a derogatory manner.
As Jack Pitt-Brooke of The Athletic put it: “Never seen anything like that Antonio Conte press conference just now. 10 minutes of trying to take everyone else down with him. It was such an amazing performance you almost had to admire it!”
