Arsenal should remember Antonio Conte's Chelsea tactic after surprising Tottenham claim

Mind-games in football have been prominent for some time as managers and players look to gain whatever advantage available to them.

We have seen plenty of it in the Premier League over the years, with the likes of Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp, Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger all playing their part in the past.

Some Arsenal supporters may have been alerted by comments made by Tottenham boss Antonio Conte at the weekend.

The Spurs manager, after he saw his side lose their third straight Premier League match, said: "When you lose two games in a row at home and a previous game against Chelsea, a team that wants to fight for the Champions League, [it's] impossible.

"The problem is that you cannot buy the winning mentality. You transfer it day by day and [you are] not sure that [it is] day by day, because there are players that are more open and they understand the process quickly, other players need more time to understand this.

"Winning mentality in my opinion means when you play, [thinking] 'I am ready to kill you and to live'. This is the difference in every duel, every second ball, every set-piece."

This is a classic tactic from Conte. It deflects attention off his team and brings it on to him - as well as perhaps lowering, or at least trying to temper, the expectation from the club's supporters.

This is not the first time we have seen Conte play the 'underdog' tactic. During his days as Chelsea manager, the Italian went into the 2018 FA Cup final suggesting the Blues were the lesser of the teams ahead of the clash against Manchester United at Wembley.

He said: "This final is a game between two great teams. I think this season we arrive not as favourites."

What happened after these comments? Chelsea went on to win the