04 January 2023 , 22:50
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Antonio Conte saw his Tottenham side silence their critics with a thumping second-half display to beat Crystal Palace 4-0... and then notably praised the young guns who have been thrust into the first-team frame.
Conte's men put a disappointing first-half display behind them to blitz their hosts after the break. Harry Kane nudged Spurs into the lead in a Premier League game for the first time in 11 matches before following up with a quickfire second. Matt Doherty and Son Heung-min followed up to secure a big result.
Young winger Bryan Gil and midfielder Oliver Skipp both featured for Spurs from the start, while Pape Matar Sarr and academy graduate Harvey White were introduced from the bench as the Italian used more of the club's youngsters.
That move comes after several comments in recent weeks regarding recruitment, which have set alarm bells ringing in North London, particularly given Conte's long-term future remains unclear.
The 18-month deal he penned back in November 2021 has just months left to run and there is no sign of an extension on the horizon. Spurs do have an option to extend Conte's deal by 12 months.
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The 52-year-old, who was serenaded by the Spurs fans all evening at Selhurst Park, praised his side for reacting to a disappointing defeat against Aston Villa at the weekend in the right manner and pointedly commented on his use of younger members of his squad.
Conte told Sky Sports: "It was a good reaction [after losing against Aston Villa]. It's not easy to win away at Crystal Palace. We're talking about a good team, well-organised.
“After the first half was imbalanced, in the second half we exploited chances to score and then we finished with a good final result."
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Antonio Conte praised the character of his young Tottenham side after they thrashed Crystal Palace (Football Daily)"It's really important because we got three points. It's important we continue to stay very close for a good position. When you don't win you risk [putting] confidence down. Don't forget, last season here we lost 3-0. It's not easy. It means we played well and I'm happy. I'm happy because we used many young players; this is important for the present and also the future."
Tottenham stepped up to blow Palace away after a tepid first-half display - and Conte praised the bravery and the character of his players in the wake of some of the criticism that has been levelled at them in recent weeks.
He added: "The message was to continue to play because we started the game very well. Then, I think in the second part of the first-half we lost a bit of control and possession. I said to the team that it was really, really important to continue to play with the ball and find space to attack. I think it was good; we played a good game. We were well-organised without the ball also to press high and recover the ball.
"This team always shows great character. I think only in the last game against Aston Villa [they didn't]. Maybe this was the only game we didn't have a strong reaction. Otherwise, we show in every game great character."