Conte is a winner - but needs transfer funds to end Tottenham's trophy wait

Something about Antonio Conte's appointment as manager of Tottenham doesn't sit quite right with me.

Conte is undoubtedly a gifted manager. He is winner who has brought titles and other silverware to the last three clubs he has managed.

The Spurs job represents a great opportunity for any new manager. Whilst their on-field struggles have been well documented, off the pitch they seem to have everything in place for the right person to succeed.

However, despite a great manager meeting a great managerial opportunity, I can't help but think that the Conte and Spurs marriage is a little like mixing oil with water.

My concerns centre around money. People seem to have missed that in recent years, Conte doesn't so much have the Midas touch - in that anything he touches turns to gold - but he has demonstrated that if you give him enough gold, he can turn it into something special.

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When he arrived to take over at Chelsea, he did so after resigning from Juventus on the second day of their 2014-15 pre-season, following a fall out over with the clubs' executives over their transfer budget.

He was quoted as saying, "Well you cannot go and eat at a €100 restaurant with only €10 in your pocket can you?" - supposedly referring to the team's ability to compete in the Champions League.

At Chelsea, Conte delivered a Premier League title and an FA Cup, however in little over two years in charge, he spent an eye watering £352million.

After getting the sack in 2018 he took a year off before joining Inter Milan, delivering them their first Serie A title in over a decade.

Again though, in just two years he spent a whopping £281 million, as well as bringing in a number of free transfers on pricey contracts, such as Alexis Sanchez form Man Utd, Arturo Vidal from Barcelona and Diego Godin from Atletico Madrid.

When he left Inter by mutual consent, again it was reported that Conte had fallen out with the club's board over their transfer kitty.

If a club backs Conte with a significant war chest, he can all but guarantee success. But at Tottenham he will have a chairman in Daniel Levy, who is renowned for being frugal with his spending; and that's where I see a miss-match.

Whilst at Chelsea, in the year between July 2016 and July 2017 Conte bought seven players that each cost over £30m. By contrast, Spurs have only purchased three players costing over £30m in their history.

With just an 18-month contract being agreed between Conte and Spurs, that says to me that one side is aware of this potential clash.

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Perhaps it is Conte, who wants the freedom to walk away if he doesn't get the cash he is promised.

Or perhaps Levy isn't convinced that Conte can be successful on his budget and he will be aware that sacking Conte and his team in 2018 reportedly cost Chelsea over £26m.

Either way, Conte's appointment feels like a win/win for Spurs. If he works his magic, great - but if it doesn't, they can get rid of him for very little and quite quickly.

Small Bite

Norwich sacking Daniel Farke shows that they believe they can still stay in the Premier League this season.

If they were sure of relegation, they should have stuck with Farke, as he has shown, twice, that he has the ability to get Norwich back into the Premier League with relative ease.