It appears that it has taken Spurs a matter of just under four months to completely crush the spirit of one of football's serial winners, Antonio Conte.
Their Italian manager looked shaken by their 1-0 loss to Burnley on Wednesday night, as he gave a downtrodden post-match interview.
In a scarcely believable interview, Conte almost seemed to suggest that Spurs should consider the viability of keeping him in the job.
Antonio Conte: Spurs manager appears to encourage club to consider his position
Antonio Conte seemed to have improved things at Spurs. The Italian took over from Nuno Espirito Santo in November with the club reeling in the lower positions of the top half. Come January, and the club were contending for a top four spot, with rivals Manchester United and West Ham faltering.
Despite three consecutive league losses in recent weeks, a dramatic victory away to Manchester City on Saturday appeared to mark the true turning point for Conte's side. That was, until a 1-0 loss away to relegation threatened Burnley.
Antonio Conte says the Club will now have to make an assessment about his future after a defeat to Burnley tonight. pic.twitter.com/z2QLaiEKZX
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) February 23, 2022
After the game, Conte spoke to Sky Sports. Given his side's poor form, you could expect he would be downtrodden. But what transpired was extraordinary, as the multiple league-winning coach seemed completely dispirited by the loss.
It was difficult tonight. It is not only tonight. In the last five games, we lost four.
It means that there will be assessment about the club, about me. I think that, for me, it's very frustrating to lose four games in the last five games. The situation speaks clear. I'm really sorry for the fans, they don't deserve this.
The club has to make an assessment, also to speak together and understand together which is the best solution.
The players are always the same. This club changed the coaches, but the players are the same. The result doesn't change. I'm too honest to accept this situation.
It's not right, it's not good for everybody to continue to lose. It's not good for no-one.
That wasn't all from Conte. He would go on to double down on his remarks in his post-match press conference, ultimately questioning his own ability in charge.
Maybe I'm not so good. Yes, I'm not so good. I think Tottenham called me to improve the situation. But, I'm too honest to close my eyes and to continue to say "okay, but I want to finish this season but my salary is good" - no, I am not this type of person.
I have ambition. I hate to lose. We lost, I repeat, four games in the last five games. I won't accept this. I want to try to move the situation, also to make assessment with the club.
Antonio Conte has always been box office. His "one regular day of Barclays" line remains one of the most iconic in Premier League history. However, we've never seen him quite so dejected as he was on Wednesday night.
It's a dire indicator of just how tricky the situation continues to be at Tottenham, and it will be fascinating to see if the Spurs board do indeed take any action to move for a third permanent manager in little over a year.
If such a proven winner as Conte can't succeed in North London, the question will surely be: who can?
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