Conte and Tottenham's top-four hopes suffer blow after depressing Southampton defeat
Not much is working for Antonio Conte and Tottenham Hotspur at the moment. Despite making some great signings in the January transfer window, it is yet to reflect on their results.
Spurs were aiming to move level on points with fifth-placed Manchester United in the Premier League when they hosted a rejuvenated Southampton side on Wednesday.
But what should've been a happy night for the north London outfit turned out to be that of disappointment after Tottenham succumbed to a 3-2 defeat.
Conte's side took the lead twice and surprisingly surrendered it. Jan Bednarek's own goal was canceled out by a stunner from Armando Broja before Heung-Min Song made it 2-1 early in the second half.
By the 79th minute, Tottenham were still holding on to their lead but a late capitulation saw Mohamed Elyounoussi and Che Adams score to overturn the score in favor of Southampton.
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Back-to-back league losses for Spurs
Suffering defeat to the Saints means Spurs have now lost back-to-back Premier League matches for the first time since Conte arrived.
This is in sharp contrast to the nine-game unbeaten run in the league that kickstarted the Italian manager's tenure at the club.
More worrying is the fact that the players appear to be mentally absent. They may have beaten Brighton in the FA Cup in between their consecutive Premier League defeats, but Spurs' performances have clearly waned.
On Wednesday, Conte called on his new signings Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski to help save the day but the pair had very little influence. It is still early days, but Tottenham need to improve and very quickly.
Antonio Conte's last two league defeats at home:
◉ October 2020: Inter 1-2 Milan
◉ February 2022: Spurs 2-3 Southampton
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Tottenham limping in top-four race
No one expected Conte to turn things around overnight at Tottenham but his bright start at the club renewed hopes that he could qualify them for the Champions League.
Those hopes have, however, been fading in recent weeks following the team's poor form. Spurs still cannot be ruled out of the top-four race but they're currently limping instead of giving their other rivals a run for their money.
"For sure, we have to be disappointed. They were good but I think we made many, many mistakes, especially with the ball, and I think this type of situation creates a bit of mental instability in my team," Conte admitted to Sky Sports.
"In the second half, then, we started to play, we started to press in the right way and then we created chances to score.
"We also did that in the first half because every time we play the ball in the right way, we created a situation to go and score, but I repeat, we made many mistakes in the first half - important mistakes."
Spurs are currently seventh in the Premier League but have three games in hand, which could change the whole dynamic. However, they need to stop dropping points, lest their top-four hopes continue to fade.