Antonio Conte Harry Kane Italy Sevilla Juventus Antonio Conte Harry Kane Italy

Spurs stars Kane, Son and Richarlison prepare to face Marseille - in pictures

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Antonio Conte has revealed his ambition to improve his Champions League record ahead of Tottenham's opener against Marseille on Wednesday but admitted it would be "unthinkable" to win the trophy this season.

Spurs boss Conte is widely regarded as one of the best coaches in the world, with numerous domestic titles in England and Italy, but has struggled in Europe's elite club competition.

During five previous seasons in the Champions League as a manager, Conte has only made it out of the group stage on two occasions.

The 53-year-old Italian, who oversaw his stars in training on the eve of the Marseille showdown, has never gone further in the tournament than a quarter-final appearance with Juventus. "Success in Europe with a trophy is important for every manager," Conte said. "You know very well that it is not simple, not easy to lift a trophy in Europe and especially the Champions League. "It is important to be there and you have more probability if you are the coach of a team who expects to win. "Two years ago with Inter Milan we lost the final of the Europa League against Sevilla.

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Part one of the healing process is complete for Italy. Looking to regain respect after failing to qualify for a second straight World Cup, the Azzurri advanced to next year’s finals tournament in the Nations League by winning at Hungary 2-0 thanks to goals by Giacomo Raspadori and Federico Dimarco on Monday. By topping a group also containing England and Germany, the Italians joined the Netherlands and Croatia in qualifying for the final four, which will be hosted by the Dutch in June. Portugal or Spain will complete the lineup when they face off on Tuesday. Unlike Italy, England and Germany will be going to the World Cup in Qatar in less than two months and they’ll head to the Middle East on the back of a wild 3-3 draw at Wembley Stadium, where all the goals were scored in the second half. Trailing 2-0, England scored three goals in a 12-minute span from the 71st — through Luke Shaw, Mason Mount and Harry Kane’s penalty — only for Kai Havertz to pounce on a fumble by England goalkeeper Nick Pope to equalize in the 87th. England’s winless run stretched to six games, with Gareth Southgate’s team finishing its Nations League campaign without a victory and relegated. Germany isn’t in much better shape ahead of the World Cup, with just one win in its last seven games. Italy won Group A3 with 11 points, one more than Hungary, which went into the game in Budapest needing only a draw to reach the Nations League final four for the first time.

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