Antonio Conte, Tottenham Agree to Part Ways; Cristian Stellini Named Interim Coach

Tottenham Hotspur announced Sunday that manager Antonio Conte has departed the club by “mutual agreement.”

Cristian Stellini will serve as the interim manager, while Ryan Mason will serve as assistant head coach.

“We have 10 Premier League games remaining and we have a fight on our hands for a Champions League place,” club chairman Daniel Levy said in a statement. “We all need to pull together. Everyone has to step up to ensure the highest possible finish for our Club and amazing, loyal supporters.”

His fate seemed to be sealed after a rant following a 3-3 draw with Southampton on March 18, in which he took out his ire, in part, on the players.

“We are 11 players that go into the pitch,” he told reporters. “I see selfish players, I see players that don’t want to help each other and don’t put their heart (in). … Why? Because they are used to it here; they are used to it. They don’t play for something important. They don’t want to play under pressure; they don’t want to play under stress.”

But his pointed words weren’t only directed at the players, but also seemingly at management and the overall culture of the club.

“It is easy in this way. Tottenham’s story is this. Twenty years there is the owner and they never won something, but why?” he said. “The fault is only for the club or for every manager that stays here. I have seen the managers that Tottenham had on the bench.”

While Spurs actually have won a trophy in the past 20 years, claiming a League Cup in 2008, the 53-year-old Conte continued the club’s unwanted tradition of not winning any silverware since.

Conte did get Tottenham to qualify for this year’s Champions League with a fourth-place finish last season, his first at the helm, surpassing bitter rival Arsenal for the final berth. It was the high point of his 17 months on the job. But this season Spurs find themselves narrowly in fourth place, two points clear of Newcastle but with two more matches played.

Arsenal, meanwhile, sit atop the Premier League table, 20 points clear of Tottenham.

“I’m really upset and everyone has to take their responsibility. Not only the club, the manager and the staff—the players have to be involved in this situation because it is time to change this situation if Tottenham want to change,” Conte said. “If they want to continue in this way, they can change the manager, a lot of managers, but the situation cannot change. Believe me.”

In response, Tottenham will try its luck with another manager. Conte’s time in North London has come to a close.