Antonio’s verdict on United: "We have to continue to work on every aspect"

Antonio Conte gave an honest assessment after our 2-0 loss against Manchester United in the Premier League at Old Trafford on Wednesday evening.

We travelled to United having put together our best start after 10 games of a Premier League campaign, but were pushed back by the home side, who had 19 shots in the first half only to be denied time and again by the outstanding Hugo Lloris.

However, there was nothing the skipper could do when Fred’s shot took a huge deflection off Ben Davies and zipped into the corner to hand United the lead a minute into the second half. We threatened briefly to come back into the game, Harry Kane whipping a shot just wide, but Bruno Fernandes put the issue beyond doubt with United's second goal on 70 minutes.

“First of all, we have to be honest and say that United deserved to win and take the three points,” reflected Antonio, speaking afterwards to SPURSPLAY. “They started the game much better than us, and it’s not the first time.

“It means we need to continue to work in every aspect, on the pitch, out of the pitch. At the same time, in this type of game, everyone needs to be prepared for the sporting war, I think we can improve in this aspect.

“It’s a pity because we arrived in a good physical condition despite injuries but in our hopes, there was another game, also in our minds. United played with great intensity, with great aggression and won a lot of duels. We missed a lot of passes. For us, for sure, it was a negative game.

“I have players who are great men and for this reason, I’m disappointed for them, because maybe someone could think tonight that we have another game. It was the same for me. Instead, the reality was really tough.”