‘Not quite right’: BBC pundit is now unsure whether ‘world class’ Tottenham man is good enough for the club

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Tottenham Hotspur fans would have been hoping for a better start to 2023, after a disappointing defeat to Aston Villa.

Writing on the BBC Sport website, Garth Crooks named his team of the week, and unsurprisingly no Spurs players featured.

Tottenham’s recent trend of starting slowly and growing into games didn’t continue yesterday.

A turgid first-half wasn’t improved upon, and eventually Aston Villa made them pay.

Emi Buendia pounced on a Hugo Lloris mistake before Douglas Luiz doubled their lead.

The entirety of Tottenham’s starting back-three were booked in the game, and their forwards failed to create any meaningful opportunities.

It’s a result that saw Spurs fall out of the top four for the first time in months, with a trip to Crystal Palace next on their agenda.

Crooks has now admitted he’s unsure whether Antonio Conte is capable of turning Tottenham’s form around.

Previously described by defender Ben Davies as ‘world class’, Conte is unable to change Tottenham’s fortunes yesterday.

Crooks unsure about Tottenham manager Conte

Writing on BBC Sport, Crooks said: “There can be no doubt that the arrival of Unai Emery has served to galvanise the Villa but Spurs are starting games desperately slowly these days and are suffering as a consequence.

“Something is not quite right at Tottenham at the moment and I’m beginning to wonder whether Antonio Conte is the right man to fix it.

“There was a distinct lack of urgency, passion and defensive nous among the Tottenham Hotspur rank and file.”

A number of Tottenham players failed to make any sort of impact against Aston Villa yesterday.

Harry Kane was virtually anonymous, and couldn’t continue his brilliant scoring record this season.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink also said that Clement Lenglet and Cristian Romero put in very poor performances.

Crooks won’t be the only person who’s currently unsure about Conte’s ability to turn this around.

The Italian manager has now seen his side go behind in each of their last ten competitive matches.

It’s a run that’s going to cost Spurs more and more points going forward.

His managerial record, however, is brilliant, and he can’t be faulted for helping Tottenham reach the Champions League last season.

It will be interesting to see what business Spurs do in January to help turn their fortunes around.