Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte on Monday challenged his team to push for a top-four finish in the English Premier League after their 5-0 rout of Everton pushed the woeful visitors deeper into relegation danger.
Tottenham ran riot in north London after Michael Keane’s own-goal started the spree early in the first half.
Son Heung-min increased Tottenham’s advantage and Harry Kane bagged the third before the interval.
Photo: Reuters
Sergio Reguilon made it four and Kane netted again to complete the demolition.
Tottenham’s second successive league victory moved them up to seventh position, three points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who have played one game less than their north London rivals.
Conte has frequently bemoaned the “ups and downs” of life as Tottenham manager, pointing to the club’s history of inconsistency as proof that it would take time for him to make an impact.
The past few weeks have underlined Conte’s concerns, with victory at champions Manchester City followed by a dismal defeat against lowly Burnley.
The swaggering display against Everton, which came immediately after an embarrassing FA Cup loss at second tier Middlesbrough, at least provided hope that the Italian could turn the tide eventually.
“A good game. Also a good answer after the last defeat,” Conte said. “It’s not enough. The players and I want to fight for a position at the top of the table.”
“We have to take this responsibility in the last 12 games to give everything. I want an answer from my players against Manchester United on Saturday,” he said. “I want to see if we’re getting better in a tough game against an important team fighting with us for the top four.”
For slumping Everton, the alarm bells are ringing after a fourth defeat in five league games since Frank Lampard replaced the sacked Rafael Benitez as manager.
Lampard’s team are languishing just one point and one place above the relegation zone.
Although they have a game in hand on third-from-bottom Burnley, their wretched surrender suggests there is a serious chance of Everton being condemned to play outside the top tier for the first time since 1954.
“I could tell there was a fear of relegation when I came in. This challenge isn’t bigger than I expected, I knew it would be [hard],” Lampard said. “Individual errors led to goals which took the game away from us. When you know what’s coming and fall foul of it, that’s the most disappointing thing.”
“The reaction was not good enough. It was the reaction of a team used to losing away from home. We need to sort it out,” he said.
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