Was Conte right in 2023 when he blasted ‘selfish’ Tottenham players and owner after 3-3 Southampton collapse?

It was ten minutes that stunned English football. On March 18, 2023, after Tottenham Hotspur threw away a 3-1 lead to draw 3-3 with Premier League bottom club Southampton — James Ward-Prowse converting a stoppage-time penalty to complete the comeback — Spurs manager Antonio Conte sat before the press and said things no active manager had ever said so publicly about his own club, according to The Guardian.

“For me this is unacceptable,” Conte began. “We are not a team. We are 11 players that go into the pitch. I see selfish players, players that don’t want to help each other and don’t put their heart.” He then turned his fire on the club itself, questioning its culture under owner Joe Lewis and chairman Daniel Levy. “Tottenham’s story is this for 20 years — there is the owner but they never won something. Why?” he said. “They are used to it here. They don’t play for something important. They don’t want to play under pressure.”

He concluded: “Everyone has to take their responsibility. Not only the club, the manager and the staff. The players have to be involved in this situation because it is time to change this situation if Tottenham want to change.

“They can change the manager, a lot of managers, but the situation cannot change. Believe me.”

Conte was sacked nine days later by mutual agreement. His words, however, lingered far longer.