Antonio Conte admitted that he underestimated the length of time he would need to recover from surgery on his second return to Tottenham – and welcomes the pressure of facing Milan on Wednesday.
Conte was initially ruled out for just a week after surgery to remove his gallbladder, but a return to Hotspur Way was cut short another seven days later when doctors demanded he stay in Italy and undergo a full recovery.
In his absence, Cristian Stellini has taken charge of Spurs’ last four games with mixed results, including two Premier League wins but also an FA Cup exit at the hands of Championship side Sheffield United.
Conte was back taking training again on Monday ahead of Wednesday’s must-win Champions League last-16 second leg against AC Milan, Conte said he had not appreciated how long his body would take to recover from the surgery, but that he was already embracing the pressure of facing the Italian champions.
“For sure, I under-evaluated the recovery after surgery,” he said. “I think that for my sense of responsibility I wanted to come back early. Maybe I over-evaluated my body and myself.
“Now I’m well and I’ve recovered energy and I have to recover weight but for the rest my feeling is good. I will try to transfer my energy to my players. It’s important for me to work with my players and the staff and prepare for the games.
“From afar I tried to stay very close with my players using video. To be present is totally different and for this reason I have to say thanks to my whole staff. They did a really good job and the players to stay for three weeks without the manager wasn’t easy, but now I’m back and I’m really happy.
“We live for these moments [like playing Milan], because when the pressure is going up, it means your level is going up. Don’t forget, last season we played in the Europa Conference League and this year it’s the Champions League.
“The pressure is normal, we have to live with this type of pressure. Maybe if there is one thing we have to try to improve the environment here, it’s to live with the pressure. Sometimes that means to be a bit stressed, not always to be in peace, but to channel it in a positive way.”
Typically undeterred by his enforced medical absence, Conte was insistent that the spell away from the club has not changed his views on his future at Tottenham or within football.
The 53-year-old is out of contract at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the summer, with his and Spurs’ plans after that still to be resolved.
“It hasn’t changed my mind,” he said. “This type of situation can happen and I discovered after the surgery that many of my friends had the same surgery.
“This was emergency surgery, not planned, and that’s very different. At first there was a lot of sad news, but when they told me that I had only surgery for this reason I was happy, because you never know what could happen.”
Son: It’s different when Conte is around
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Tottenham’s Heung-Min Son says it’s an ‘amazing boost’ to have Antonio Conte back in the dugout for their Champions League clash with AC Milan.
Heung-Min Son joined Conte in his pre-match press conference and paid tribute to the difference the Italian’s presence makes to him and his team-mates, who were beaten 1-0 at Wolves on Saturday and now have their top-four hopes out of their own hands.
Asked about Conte’s return, he said: “It’s important. I’m glad that the manager is sitting next to me. He brings good energy to the team. When the boss isn’t here it’s different. Yesterday we could feel that energy and his passion on the touchline we’ll feel more comfortable.
“We don’t want the fans to be disappointed. It was painful last week to get out of the FA Cup. To be a good season we have to do the best things we can at the moment. We’re still in the Champions League and fighting for the top four. We have to go for these things otherwise it’s going to be poor and very sad.”
