Thu 12 May 2022, 23:55
Tottenham HotspurAntonio Conte was delighted with how the players handled the pressure of a crucial north London derby and delivered a 3-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday night.
Backed by an incredible atmosphere in the first derby at the new stadium - and a record attendance of 62,027 - we had the game under control by half-time as another double from Harry Kane, extending his record NLD tally to 13, saw us 2-0 up with the Gunners down to 10 men, Rob Holding sent off for two bookable offences.
Heung-Min Son extended the lead two minutes into the second half - taking his tally to 21 in the Premier League, one behind Mo Salah - and we managed the rest of the game perfectly, Harry denied a hat-trick by Aaron Ramsdale, who also saved well from Emerson Royal.
Speaking to Spurs TV, Antonio told us: “You know very well in this type of game, a must-win game, it’s never easy. There is a lot of pressure on your shoulders. Tonight, only one result was good for us, to win and get three points in a difficult game, a north London derby, and to win 3-0 was good for us, good for our fans.
“Tonight, also I was a bit curious to see the way we approached this game. For this reason, what I’ve seen tonight made me happy. It means that this team is improving not only on the pitch, but also in mentality. This is not easy, not simple, but we are working really well, in only six, seven months, you can see that we’ve had a lot of improvements in many aspects.
“For sure, I have to say thanks from me and from my players to our fans, because the atmosphere they created tonight was amazing. I ask them also on Sunday... I understand it will be difficult to wake up because we play at 12 o’clock, but we need this atmosphere, because with this atmosphere, my players are ready to give not only 100 per cent, but 200 per cent.”
