Tottenham Hotspur reporter Rob Guest discussed Antonio Conte’s anger after Luke Thomas took out Dejan Kulusevski during Spurs’ 3-1 win over Leicester City.
The Lilywhites revived their hopes of Champions League qualification with a victory over the Foxes, with a brace from Son Heung-min and a Harry Kane goal securing the points. Kulusevski started on the bench, but was brought on in the second half and provided both assists for Son’s goals.
He was taken out by Thomas after the full-back was once again beaten by the Sweden international, and Guest discussed Conte’s reaction. Speaking on the latest episode of the Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham podcast, he said of Kulusevski: “As soon as he came on, he impacted the game. He made a terrific run through the heart of the pitch, got his way into the area following a weaving run.
“Then there was another bit, when I think he was up against Luke Thomas, really good flick to get beyond him. Thomas swiped him, he fell to the ground and obviously, Antonio Conte’s assistant, Cristian Stellini – he raced out of his seat in the dugout. He was raging at the fourth official and Conte wasn’t happy at all about that.”
TIF Thoughts on the tackle…
Conte is not a manager to hide his emotions, especially when things do not go his way. The tackle from Thomas was cynical – a real last resort for a player who had been a little embarrassed by Kulusevski. The 22-year-old already has three goals and eight assists in just 14 Premier League fixtures – Thomas will unlikely be the last player to come out second-best against the forward.
Will Spurs get top 4?
Yes
No
Kulusevski will be vital to Spurs as they look to break into the top four – they are two points off Arsenal with four games to play, including a north London derby that will no doubt be tense. Fortunately, Kulusevski did not seem to be impacted by the late challenge and can still play his part as we approach the business end of the campaign.