Antonio Conte responds to boos from fans in ‘unfair’ Liverpool defeat

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Antonio Conte has responded to home supporters booing the team off at half-time in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat against Liverpool. Conte’s side started slowly again and were punished by Mohamed Salah’s excellence at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Spurs paid the ultimate price for starting another game slowly, failing to recover from going behind on this occasion. Mohamed Salah slotted Liverpool ahead in the 11th minute amid a dominant start and doubled their lead five minutes before half-time, dinking over Hugo Lloris after latching onto Eric Dier’s weak back-header.

After full-time, Conte responded to disgruntlement from the stands at the break by acknowledging the support his side received. And he added that Spurs’ defeat was ‘unfair’ after the improved second-half showing, in which the hosts pushed and came close to scoring an equaliser.

He told Sky Sports: “I think the fans tried to support us from the start until the end, and for sure, they received the big effort the players made [in response]. In the first half, it was unbalanced, we were 2-0 down and could’ve finished better – we didn’t score. And then in the second half, we attacked a lot and created many chances, and honestly, I think the result is unfair.”

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As they have commonly done in recent weeks after a dressing down from Conte, Spurs looked like a different team after the break. Dejan Kulusevski made an impact moments after coming off the bench, assisting Harry Kane’s 70th-minute strike to set up a nervy end.

But Liverpool held on for their first Premier League away win of the season, while Tottenham remain just three points ahead of Manchester United in fourth, having played an extra game. Conte will be keen for his side to rediscover their mojo in the final two outings before the World Cup break.

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