TOTTENHAM stars were left “on their knees” by Antonio Conte’s incredible pre-match request before he departed the club, according to reports.
The Italian walked away on Sunday night after his rant at his players after a 3-3 draw to Southampton.
Conte’s assistant Cristian Stellini has been put in charge until the end of the season and the Spurs squad will be hoping for a new lease life.
The Daily Mail report that Conte had players shattered coming into matches because he often made them run 2km before kick-off.
They also claim that the team had become disillusioned by the gaffer’s defensive style as they wanted to play more more expansive football.
A source also said the squad did not enjoy heading to their Enfield base as training was the same every day.
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The report continues to state that Conte regularly changed training times and it infuriated the players.
Tottenham suffered a 2-0 away loss to Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League and that led to a fuming Conte to order his team to arrive at their HQ three hours earlier than planned the following day.
The decision was “not well received”.
Spurs chief Daniel Levy began to grow increasingly annoyed about Conte’s regular swipes at the club in the media and he had prepared to let him go at the end of the season when his contract was due to expire.
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However, following his incredible meltdown after the draw to Saints, he decided to pull the trigger.
The mood in the boardroom had shifted from happiness at having Conte to a feeling of discontent.
Spurs have been linked with former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann and ex-Barcelona manager Luis Enrique as they search for a new man to take over.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
