Conte could unearth his next Bastoni by unleashing "flawless" £12.5m-rated Spurs gem - opinion

Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur side head into Saturday’s clash against table-topping Manchester City in something of a slump in form, having lost their last three outings in the Premier League.

And, considering the fact that Spurs have shipped seven goals over these three fixtures – two against Chelsea, three against Southampton and two against Wolverhampton Wanderers – it is clear that defence is an area in which the Italian’s outfit requires much improvement.

Indeed, Davinson Sanchez has been extremely poor in his last three starts on the right of Conte’s back three, with the Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick awarding the 25-year-old a rating of 5/10 for his performance against the Blues, as well as a four in both the Saints and Wolves defeats, before the journalist questioned: “What has Joe Rodon got to do to get a chance?”

This is something that Conte almost immediately addressed, with the 52-year-old suggesting that he could have made a mistake in leaving the Wales international out against Wolves, stating in his post-match comments: “With Joe, we are talking about a really good guy. We are talking about a person whose commitment is very high every day. But, in this moment, maybe I make a mistake [picking] different players.”

And, considering the skillset of the 24-year-old centre-back – who is comfortable operating in any of the positions in a three-man defence, as well as boasting an impressive range of passing – Rodon would very much appear to be a perfect fit for the Italian’s style of play – something which makes it even more surprising that the defender has been overlooked this season.

Conte has proven before that, when he places his trust in an up and coming defender, they can go on to achieve great things