It was mid-October when Antonio Conte first started laughing at the notion of Tottenham as potential champions.
His team had just lost at Manchester United, their second Premier League defeat of the season, and they were third, four points from leaders Arsenal.
‘Sometimes I hear we are title contenders,’ he said, chuckling and shaking his head for effect. ‘In only 11 months you cannot pass from ninth to become title contenders, especially when you were 20 points less.’
In fact, Tottenham were 10th for Conte’s first Premier League game in charge, in November 2021, and finished the season in fourth, trailing champions Manchester City by 22 points.