“We have only one way to improve our performance and the level at Tottenham at the moment,” said Conte. “We have to try to improve every single player, physically, tactically and technically. We can try to be competitive like this. I know very well you can reach one level, but then you need to improve the quality also.”
It might even be that Conte could end Tottenham’s long wait for silverware with this squad, given the club are now in the last four of the Carabao Cup and Manchester City are out. That would be a fantastic achievement in his first half-season at Spurs, but Conte’s ambition is higher. His vision is much, much bigger.
In their short time together, Conte and Levy have struck up a good relationship. The 52-year-old has made himself at home in his new surroundings and is happy with the attitude shown by his squad. But the first test of that bond with Levy will come in the January transfer window.
Conte is a teacher, he can improve players and get the very best out of them, but at some stage soon Levy will have to accept that the quality just isn’t there for the former Juventus, Chelsea and Inter Milan manager to replicate the kind of success he had at his former clubs.
In Hugo Lloris, Eric Dier, who was at fault for Jarrod Bowen’s goal on Wednesday night, Son Heung-min, Cristian Romero, who is injured, Lucas Moura and Harry Kane, Conte will feel he has a strong base to work around. And in Oliver Skipp the Italian has at least one young player whose ceiling he will believe is high.
But he will quickly want to add ready-made quality and it will be interesting to see whether or not Tottenham make a new bid for Adama Traore in January. The speed-king was identified as a target while Nuno was in charge during the summer, but Spurs only made an offer to take him on loan. Conte is also a fan of the player and would no doubt see a similar bid as a waste of time. He will want Levy to commit to the kind of offer that might make Wolves think.
Conte will be worried that he is having to start with Kane in pretty much every game because, incredibly, Tottenham do not have another senior striker on the books. He will want another forward, even if they have to be paid big wages to spend time on the substitutes’ bench as the England captain’s deputy.
He will also want the contract situation of Lloris, who was superb against West Ham, sorted out sooner rather than later with the Frenchman’s current deal due to expire in the summer.
The first couple of months have only really proved what we already knew – that Conte is one of the finest coaches of his generation. The next month or so will go some way to proving whether or not Levy really does share his ambition. It is going to be fascinating, but, in the meantime, at least Tottenham supporters have a team they can recognise and be proud of again.
