Antonio Conte says Yves Bissouma, Matt Doherty and Oliver Skipp will be firmly in his plans as Tottenham players he can count on after the international break.
Bissouma was signed from Brighton in the summer as one of the best midfielders outside the established top six in recent seasons. However, he has made just one start this season for Conte since arriving and the Spurs head coach admitted this week that the 26-year-old has been "struggling with the tactical aspect" and needed to "pay more attention" to his defending.
Two other Tottenham players waiting for game time this season are right wing-back Matt Doherty and midfielder Oliver Skipp. The former is still trying to find his top gear after a knee injury ended last season prematurely for him and for the latter a hairline fracture in his heel after a freak training collision caused him a setback at the start of the campaign and now he is also trying to get back to peak sharpness.
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Tottenham face three games a week from after the international break as Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup matches are crammed in before the winter World Cup brings the season to a temporary close for more than a month from mid-November.
Conte believes that the bigger squad at his disposal this season after Spurs signed six new players in the summer, with another in Destiny Udogie arriving next year, means that as well as the newcomers getting more of pre-season to integrate, the three players mentioned have been able to work in the background and will be ready when they return from international commitments in the coming fortnight.
"For sure when you have the possibility to work, to have more time, especially with new players, you can bring all the players into our idea of football," he said. "In this first part of the season I wanted to play with the old players because they knew very well which is our idea of football, but now I think we are doing the good step with Richy, with Clement and with Ivan Perisic.
"With Bissouma we are trying to accelerate this process, but for sure when you arrive in a team well organised with an idea of football, you need a bit of time to go into this idea of football, but I think that in the next 12 games I have at least three players that I can count on much more in the way that I did in these seven games."
Bissouma faces competition in the centre of the pitch from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur as well as Skipp, who has made a big impression on Conte despite his tender years.
It was pointed out to the Tottenham boss that with Bissouma still adapting to his football philosophy, Cesc Fabregas and Christian Eriksen both also took some time to adapt to his midfield demands at Chelsea and Inter respectively.
"Yeah but I think they are two different situations, because in my past in England when we played with this system, we played with two midfielders - like Kante and Matic," explained the Spurs head coach. "Strong midfielders with good quality, good stamina, good physically. When I played with three midfielders, for sure I need a pivot who is more good with the ball, more quality, less strong physically.
"Two players [like this], for example at Inter Milan I had Brozovic and Barella, players with different characteristics. When you go to play with three strikers you need to have two midfielders to have quality and be strong physically. I think that for this reason we have these type of players. I am really happy because I am seeing a lot of improvement in my midfielders."
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