Tottenham boss Antonio Conte has returned to work at the club after undergoing gallbladder surgery.
All being well, the Italian, who has been in Turin recuperating, is expected to oversee training for the rest of the week and then take his place in the dugout when Spurs meet Leicester at the King Power Stadium on Saturday, though assistant Cristian Stellini will fulfil pre-match media duties on Thursday afternoon.
Last Wednesday, Spurs announced that Conte had been taken ill with “severe abdominal pain” which was diagnosed as cholecystitis and required an operation, followed by a period of recovery away from the club.
In Conte’s absence, Stellini took the team for Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Manchester City. There had been hope that Conte would be allowed to return to north London to watch the game from the directors’ box, but the medical advice was that the 53-year-old was not yet ready to travel.
Conte did, however, telephone into the Spurs dressing room moments after the full-time whistle to congratulate striker Harry Kane on breaking Jimmy Greaves’ all-time club scoring record.
The manager’s return is timely ahead of a crucial period in Spurs’ season. A win at Leicester would see Conte’s side climb into the top four of the Premier League, at least until Newcastle play Bournemouth later in the day.
Next Tuesday, Conte will be back in his homeland for the Champions League last-16 first-leg tie against AC Milan, which is followed by back-to-back home London derbies against West Ham and Chelsea in the top-flight.
Conte is coming back to something of a headache in the goalkeeping department after captain Hugo Lloris was ruled out for at least six weeks with a knee injury. Lloris struggled with the problem late in Sunday’s victory over City and though able to complete the 90 minutes, was later found to have ligament damage.
