Antonio Conte using Liverpool as template for success at Tottenham
By Tom Gott
Tottenham manager Antonio Conte has revealed he is keen to base his reign at the club on Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, ahead of the two sides' meeting on Sunday.
Klopp arrived at Anfield in 2015 when Liverpool were not competing for the Premier League title, but after being backed through a tricky few seasons early on, the boss rewarded the Reds with Champions League and Premier League glory.
Conte finds himself in a similar situation. Spurs are seventh in the table and the Italian has never shied away from just how much work he needs to do to get this side up to scratch, and he told Sky Sports that he hopes he gets the same backing as Klopp has at Liverpool.
"On Sunday, we play against a team that can teach us a lot, because I think Jurgen Klopp, when he arrived at Liverpool, he started a fantastic job," Conte said. "But the first season they didn't [achieve] so much, but the work began.
"If you want to reach this level, you need work, time, patience and investment [on transfers]."
Conte went on to stress that he is yet to speak about goals and targets with chairman Daniel Levy, instead insisting that the focus is solely on rebuilding the team after a few years of turmoil.
"Honestly, we didn't speak about this [target]," Conte said.
"I wanted to come to Tottenham because I found their characteristics were what I like to work with: fantastic training ground and stadium. I, and people, know very well that, in this moment, we have just started our work. We need patience.
"When you start to work, you have to work on many aspects, there are also psychological aspects."