Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte has stated that star striker Harry Kane has been suffering from fatigue and is 'really, really tired' just over a week before the Qatar World Cup 2022, leaving England fans worried.
Just over a week before Harry Kane leads England into the battle for the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte claimed that the star striker is suffering from fatigue. Kane was started by Conte in the Lilly Whites' 2-0 EFL Carabao Cup loss to Nottingham Forest on Wednesday due to a lack of alternative options.
The England captain started each of Tottenham's 21 games in all competitions this season before being replaced at the hour mark. Son Heung-min is presently out for Conte with a shattered eye socket, and Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski are recovering from injuries.
"He was really, really tired. Yesterday we had a soft training session, really soft and at one point he stopped himself to recover energy," said Conte.
"I repeat he's okay, it's only fatigue, but it is normal because Harry played every game. When you have a player like him it is difficult to decide not to play with him," the Italian added.
The group stages of European club championships were condensed into two months to create room in the schedule for the first mid-season World Cup. Tottenham will have played 13 games in 42 days before the World Cup break by the time they take on Leeds on Saturday.
"Harry Kane showed to be a really good man also," added Conte as he thanked his players for not pulling out of games to save themselves for their countries.
"But not only him it is the same for (Pierre-Emile) Hojbjerg, (Rodrigo) Bentancur, (Ivan) Perisic, (Eric) Dier. We faced a bad situation about the injuries and we arrive at the end in difficulty. Now we have to try to rest and recover energy," the Tottenham boss concluded.
🗣 "He was really, really tired."
Antonio Conte reveals that Harry Kane has been suffering from fatigue pic.twitter.com/fVzE1ZhTGS
Following this admission by Conte, England fans have been left worried, with some taking to Twitter to slam the Tottenham boss for bringing him on for Wednesday's clash.
"Nice solution playing him in a nothing competition," said one fan. Another supporter stated, "Don't play him against Leeds; we'll lose either way."
A third fan added, "Yet he still started him. Conte's a fucking moron." A fourth fan remarked, "An England player is going to get injured this weekend, you can be certain of that. And the fault will lay entirely at the feet of the FA who didn’t have the backbone to stand up against the nonsense that has transpired in the last 12 years."
Here's a look at some of the other reactions on the micro-blogging site:
Yet he still started him. Conte’s a fucking moron. https://t.co/7aavCTbRWe
— Julian Betts (@BettsJulian)don’t play him against leeds, we’ll lose either way https://t.co/zOGVdKYugf
— alice (@alicelethaby)drop him. england needs a proper sticker and captain. one who doesn’t fall down for no reason. https://t.co/9Gdt5gpoFp
— hammy. (@iamhamesh)Post World Cup Kane might be finito https://t.co/owOHMLou25 pic.twitter.com/8ri4XrjrMc
— William 🦋 (@AFCWilliam__)Basically, Conte method is rather let senior players get knackered than young players get a chance to prove themselves. Was not a fan of Poch, but Conte is anti-Poch. Harry Kane may not have existed if Conte were our manager then. https://t.co/eY6qL7b1ur
— Malav @malavparekh@mastodon.online Parekh (@Malavtweets)Great timing as I’m currently watching the Fifa documentary on netflix. These corrupt cunts have run players into the ground to line their own shameless pockets. Football needs a hard, long look at itself. And that should have come with the FBI indictments in 2015 https://t.co/UtVFjGaSJv
— Daniel (@DanielTHFC6)An England player is going to get injured this weekend, you can be certain of that. And the fault will lay entirely at the feet of the FA who didn’t have the backbone to stand up against the nonsense that has transpired in the last 12 years. https://t.co/K7kkZjYjAQ
— Adam Nathan (@adamdnathan)Once again, FIFA have colossally screwed this World Cup up, even beyond the off-pitch problems. We’re not going to see the best possible performances because everyone is exhausted from the packed pre-WC club schedule. https://t.co/8Hn0rRVS3s
— Caroline Stefko (@cgstefko)Then why did you play him?? He has lost the plot https://t.co/QUxD1n0PVm
— KANESZN ENICOUT (@kaneszn1)Bitter Italian prick is running our best tournament hope into the ground on purpose. https://t.co/yXREFWhCcZ
— Ryan Powell (@powellBFC93)Spare bed at mine you need your rest before Qatar https://t.co/XBYRmybvJa
— JJ 🏴 (@___JJ_____)Probably wasn't wise to play him during such a packed schedule. https://t.co/DtKXPZOQ0O
— MM (@MickMcCarthy92)