‘Miles behind’ - Pundit reveals Antonio Conte’s biggest problem at Tottenham

Gabriel Agbonlahor believes Antonio Conte has a problem with squad depth at Tottenham.

Tottenham have made a strong start to the season, but they were handed a setback over the weekend when they came up short against north London rivals and league leaders Arsenal.

Emerson Royal’s red card did not help, but Spurs - who have since drawn in the Champions League - were outworked from the start, and Conte will have been disappointed with the performance his men put together at the Emirates Stadium.

Overall, it has still been a strong start for Spurs, but derby defeats like this one often set off alarm bells, whether it is warranted or not.

And talkSPORT pundit Agbonlahor believes Conte is snookered in his team selection due to the full-backs he has at his disposal.

“He doesn’t trust his full-backs, wing-backs,” said the former Aston Villa forward.

“I’ve changed their formation here to 4-2-3-1, and Sessegnon left-back, Spence right-back.

“And he’s probably looking at that, thinking ‘am I too open? Are they defensive full-backs?’

“He doesn’t like conceding goals. He is not going to change the three centre-backs to two centre-backs, and as long as they play that formation, they are going to suffer without a number 10 getting on the ball.

“You hear Spurs fans talking about other teams playing attacking football. When Spurs get the ball, Harry Kane drops off, and he wants to play that quick pass.

“Other teams, if the pass is not on, they keep the ball for a bit. Spurs want to make that quick pass, they give the ball away, and they’ve got to chase shadows.

“I just can’t see him changing that formation with those formations? Is Emerson Royal a liablility at full-back? He’s alright at wing-back because he has others to help out.”

Agbonlahor also claimed that Spurs don’t have the level of squad that others in the Premier League boast.

“I don’t think their squad is as good as people think,” he added.

“I’m looking at their squad yesterday, and Kulusevksi is out injured, and the only option they had to bring on was Bryan Gil, who didn’t look anywhere near it - he hasn’t had enough game time.

“If Kane, Son or Richarlison got injured, Kulusevski is out,and they are struggling for numbers.

“You look at that squad compared to Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea - they are miles behind, for me.”