Antonio Conte on Tottenham Exit: 'We celebrated 4th like title win'

Updated: 15 Jun, 2025 • 0 • min read

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Antonio Conte on Tottenham Exit: 'We celebrated 4th like title win'

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Antonio Conte has opened up about his short-lived stint at Tottenham Hotspur, revealing the moment he realised the club's mentality didn't align with his own.

Speaking on Buffa Talks with Sky Sport Italia, the former Chelsea and Juventus boss admitted that seeing Spurs players celebrate Champions League qualification like it was a title win left him concerned about the standards at the club.

'Not Used to Celebrating This Way'

I arrived at Tottenham in November with the team ninth in the table, in the first year we beat Arsenal to the Champions League spot.

For Tottenham, you must understand, qualifying for the Champions League is practically the same as winning the Premier League title.

Conte pointed specifically to the final game of the 2021/22 season, when Spurs beat Norwich City to secure fourth place.

I remember at the end of the game with Norwich, there were celebrations in the dressing room.

I called my staff over and told them, "We'd better not get used to this sort of celebration" - meaning we shouldn't be celebrating Champions League qualification as if it was the Premier League title.

We were accustomed to celebrating for very different things.

Conte's Winning Mentality

Conte, now coach of Napoli, has just led the club to a Scudetto, his third Serie A triumph with a third different club, having already done so with Juventus and Inter Milan.

He also won the Premier League with Chelsea in 2017 and brought with him a reputation for instilling a winning mentality wherever he goes.

Whilst his time at Tottenham ended in March 2023, the Italian tactician's blunt honesty offers insight into why that chapter never quite clicked.

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