Former Tottenham defender William Gallas believes Antonio Conte is 'world class' and labelled Spurs' north London rivals, Arsenal, manager Mikel Arteta a 'failure'.
Conte's side finished in the top four last season and finished above the Gunners after the fight for Champions League went down to the final day. Spurs are currently out in South Korea for their pre-season tour and have signed five new players as they strengthen ahead of a busy 2022/23 campaign.
The Italian boss put his players through their paces in an open training session on Monday ahead of their first fixture of pre-season against Team K League. Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Yves Bissouma all struggled in the fitness drill following two hours of training, 'collapsing' to the floor before joining back in with the group.
READ MORE: Sergio Reguilon linked with Tottenham transfer exit following pre-season tour absence
Speaking to Genting Casino, Gallas discussed Conte, Arteta and the fight for Champions League football next season. The former Spurs and Arsenal defender said: "It's always difficult at the beginning of the season to tell which London clubs are going to qualify for the Champions League or who's going to have the best opportunity to win the Premier League because when we look at Tottenham and Arsenal, who have signed some good players this summer, I'd say it's 50/50."
Gallas went on to praise Conte for the job he did after replacing Nuno Espirito Santo midway through the 2021/22 season, taking Spurs to a top four spot. The French former player also criticised Arsenal boss Arteta, labelling the Spaniard as a 'failure' because they missed out Champions League qualification last season.
"It will be very interesting to see which team will come out on top. Last season it was Tottenham because Antonio Conte did a great job, he's got that passion and he brought it to his players so that's why for the new season it will give Tottenham the chance to improve again," Gallas continued.
"With Arsenal, it's another problem with Mikel Arteta. He's a young manager but for me, he failed last season because they didn't qualify for the Champions League. Now they have a new striker, so we will see what will happen."
Both north London clubs have strengthened significantly this summer, with both sides adding a new Brazilian striker, with Richarlison making the move to N17, whilst Gabriel Jesus moved to the Emirates.
Spurs are still in the market for a few more players, with talks ongoing for Middlesbrough defender Djed Spence as they look to move on the likes of Sergio Reguilon, Tanguy Ndombele, Harry Winks and Giovanni Lo Celso.
READ NEXT:
What happened when Richarlison met Cristian Romero for the first time as a Tottenham player
Full Tottenham Premier League fixture list for 2022/23
Richarlison problem can be solved by Antonio Conte at Tottenham as transfer success continues
Tottenham news and transfers recap: Exit confirmed, Everton 'request', Djed Spence twist
