Antonio Conte has admitted that it is a 'pity' that in-form Spurs will have to wait nearly two weeks to play Newcastle United because of the international break.
Conte's side have won four of their last five games in the Premier League to move within three points of bitter rivals Arsenal, who are currently in fourth place in the table. Spurs recorded an impressive 3-1 win against West Ham on Sunday, but the club's internationals will now be spread across the globe for up to a week-and-a-half before returning to the capital to prepare for the visit of Newcastle to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on April 3.
Newcastle, in contrast, only have a handful of players away on international duty and the bulk of the squad are currently together in Dubai for a warm-weather training camp. A similar break in Saudi Arabia proved crucial to Newcastle collecting 16 points from their next six games earlier this season and Howe hopes this latest excursion will give his players the chance to bond while also doing some intense sessions in warmer climes.
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In contrast to Spurs, this break has come at a good time for Newcastle's jaded players following a run of three away games in the space of a week. Newcastle beat Southampton but lost against Chelsea and Everton, and Conte would have preferred to face the Magpies sooner.
"It's a pity now there is a stop, that there is an international break, because, honestly, we are in a top moment, a good moment of form," the Tottenham boss told Spurs TV. "The team is playing the football that we want to play very well.
"It's a pity but now there is the national team and I want to wish my players, especially the players that are going to play in the qualifiers for the World Cup, the best. Then, next week, when they come back, we have to restart in the same way."
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