LONDON (Reuters) - Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte claims last year's top-four finish in the Premier League was 'a miracle' and said pre-season expectations of a title tilt were ludicrous.
Speaking after a Sunday's dismal 2-0 defeat by Aston Villa that left Tottenham in fifth place, 13 points behind leaders Arsenal, the Italian offered a dose of harsh reality.
"Because we played only one competition, and we played with 12 or 13 players and they didn't have injuries in the last 15 games, we played with our best players every game because, I repeat, we played only the league. Tottenham were booed off on Sunday as they barely managed a shot at Villa's goal. In mitigation they were without the creative spark of Dejan Kulusevski who was injured and Brazilian forward Richarlison who was also unavailable.
"I remember very well in the summer, at the start, people talked about Tottenham as title contenders but in my experience it was a bit crazy to read this," he said.
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