‘They need time’ - Antonio Conte calls for patience with new Tottenham signings Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur

ByWill Magee

Published 08/02/2022 at 19:08 GMT

Having made their debuts for Spurs in their 3-1 win against Brighton in the FA Cup on Saturday, Kulusevski and Bentancur have already got off the mark in north London. Speaking ahead of his side’s Premier League meeting with Southampton on Wednesday, however, Conte has stressed that the pair will need time to hit their stride.

‘I was not worried’ - Conte thrilled with Kane’s return to goalscoring form for Tottenham

Antonio Conte has called for patience with January arrivals Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur, saying they will “need a bit of time” to adapt to his tactical demands and Tottenham’s style of play.

Spurs were busy during the January transfer window with Kulusevski and Bentancur both arriving from Juventus, the former on an 18-month loan and the latter on a four-and-a-half-year deal. They also sanctioned a series of departures, with Dele Alli moving to Everton and Bryan Gil, Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso all leaving on loan.

Kulusevski and Bentancur both made their debuts for Spurs in their 3-1 win against Brighton in the FA Cup on Saturday, coming on as second-half substitutes. While they have already got off the mark in north London, both will be hoping to make their first starts before long.

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Asked whether he was impressed with their cameos ahead of his side’s Premier League meeting with Southampton on Wednesday, Conte said: “Yeah, I think they are working very well and I’m pleased with the way that they are understanding our idea of football.

“Both Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski are good players and they are working very well.

“For sure, they need a bit of time to understand very well, to go into the team and to understand our tactical aspect defensively and offensively. But I’m very pleased, because I know that I can count on them.”

‘I was not worried’ - Conte thrilled with Kane’s return to goalscoring form for Tottenham

Conte also reserved high praise for Harry Kane, who has experienced a gradual uptick in form since the Italian’s appointment as manager in November and scored twice against Brighton at the weekend. “Honestly, I wasn’t worried before in the past when he didn’t score a lot because his performance was always very, very high,” Conte said.

“He played in every game very well for the team, he worked a lot for the team, and he’s a fantastic player for me. He’s not selfish, and now that he’s scoring I think that I’m happy for him and I’m happy for the team because, if he scores, we have more probability to get three points or to go to the next round in trophies, competitions.

“But, as I said before, also in the past his performances were very positive for me despite [the fact] he didn’t score a lot.

“We know very well that we are talking about a world-class striker. He is able to score in every game and we have also to try to help him to score.”

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