Antonio Conte says Tottenham have to ‘think as a winner’ over fixture pileup

Antonio Conte leads Spurs back into the big time on Wednesday night with a Champions League home tie against Marseille but he continues to complain that they are not acting like a big club – specifically with regard to exerting an influence over fixture congestion.

Conte is stunned at the schedule that confronts his team with 17 matches in all competitions before the Premier League pauses after the weekend of 12-13 November for the World Cup. Spurs are in the midst of a run of seven games in 21 days and the manager is particularly aggrieved by what he feels are a greater number of compressed sequences when compared with rival English clubs in Europe.

Conte believes that the Spurs hierarchy must do more in their lobbying of the Premier League, echoing a comment he made towards the end of last season, when his team had to follow the derby with Arsenal on a Thursday night with a midday kick-off against Burnley on the Sunday. Back then, Conte suggested that a top club would not have accepted it.

Conte said on Tuesday: “Our schedule is incredible, it’s crazy. We played three games in six days [actually seven] against Nottingham Forest, West Ham and Fulham. Now we are playing after four days but it is three important games in six days [actually seven] – Marseille, Manchester City away and Sporting Lisbon away. This is maybe the first time in my career to see a schedule like this.

“I try to check the schedule of the other teams and I have seen that in this situation, Tottenham, they penalise a lot our club. In the future, and also I spoke with the club [about this], we have to pay great attention to speak to the Premier League.

“One day more, one day less, can change totally your life and you can drop points. This is no good