Antonio Conte was back in Tottenham training on Thursday following surgery to have his gallbladder removed, assistant manager Cristian Stellini has confirmed.
Spurs announced last Wednesday that head coach Conte had been diagnosed with cholecystitis after suffering with severe abdominal pain. Conte travelled to Turin to have his gallbladder removed, and he remained in Italy until flying back to England on Wednesday.
Assistant Stellini oversaw the impressive 1–0 win over Manchester City at the weekend. Conte phoned Harry Kane when the striker was in the changing room after the match, congratulating him for breaking Jimmy Greaves’s record to become the club’s all-time leading scorer.
Welcome back, Boss 💙 pic.twitter.com/QcIEWxBAui
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 9, 2023
Conte is expected to take his place back in Tottenham’s dugout on Saturday when they take on Leicester at the King Power Stadium. Spurs hammered Brendan Rodgers’s side 6-2 in the reverse fixture in September.
Stellini said: “Antonio is back. This morning he was on the pitch with us. He has to take it easy for a bit. We were so happy to meet him again on the training ground. He spent time hugging everyone.”
Asked whether they had found the time to discuss tactical decisions ahead of the trip to Leicester, Stellini replied: “We didn’t speak about what he would do in the next match, but he is back and we are happy for that. We have time to arrive in the game happy.”
The first problem that Conte encounters as he returns to the club comes in the goalkeeping department. First-choice ‘keeper and captain Hugo Lloris suffered knee ligament damage in the victory over City. Subsequent scans showed that he will be out for between six and eight weeks.
