Daniel Levy told to stop dawdling and deliver for Tottenham, as sensational £150m-plus Antonio Conte signings tipped (original) (raw)

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy must be willing to splash the cash this summer if manager Antonio Conte is to win the club silverware, one pundit has said.

Spurs have endured a troublesome time on and off the pitch following the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino in 2019. Not only have they expended two managers, but their problems show no real signs of going away.

Conte, who has succeeded Nuno Espirito Santo and Jose Mourinho, has made no secret of the gap between Tottenham and the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City.

The Italian took major steps in reshaping his squad in January by removing four first-team players. Meanwhile, he added former Juventus pair Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski.

Conte does not typically spend long at clubs, relying on instant impact and game-changing transfers rather than a longer-term project.

Tottenham’s results have yet to turn a real corner since his arrival in November, though. As a result, Micah Richards has urged Levy to spend big to get Spurs where Conte wants them to be.

“Awful! Absolutely awful. It’s not Conte’s problem,” Richards told BBC Radio 5 Live. “In the summer, he needs to spend £100 million plus.

“Get him some proper players. £100 million plus, I would go, maybe £150-200 million, whatever you can get.”

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Levy has made his name at Spurs as a shrewd businessman who does not often splash the cash.

His stance may well have hardened following the struggles endured by Tanguy Ndombele, Spurs’ club-record, £55million signing in 2019 who moved back to Lyon on loan in January.

As such, BBC Radio 5 Live host Mark Champman was quick to insist that Richards had earlier praised Tottenham for their business model.

But Richards replied: “But the expectations are completely different [at Tottenham].

“Spurs can’t bring players in and wait for them to play well in a year or 18 months. They need ready-made [players]. Conte is a winner, he hasn’t got time to wait about for young players.”

Rodon in Tottenham limelight amid Levy criticism

One player who is in the limelight at Tottenham of late is Joe Rodon.

The centre-back arrived at Spurs from Swansea in October 2020 in the hope of becoming a regular feature in the defence.

However, he has only made 22 appearances since he signed.

Amid Tottenham’s defensive issues that have led in part to them losing three Premier League games in a row, Rodon’s absence has been highlighted.

Conte admitted that he may have made a mistake by not playing the Wales international more.

Meanwhile, some senior Tottenham players have reportedly been pushing for the manager to play the centre-back more.