Tottenham manager Antonio Conte believes his squad was “weakened” in the January transfer window despite the club signing two players.
Spurs brought in Juventus pair Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur on deadline day but Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso left on loan.
Dele Alli also joined Everton on a free transfer while Bryan Gil moved to Valencia.
“What happened in January was not easy,” Conte told Sky Sport Italia.
Spurs boss Conte added:
“We lost four players. Four important players for Tottenham and we brought in only two.
“So even just in terms of numbers, rather than reinforce the squad, we, on paper, may have weakened it.”
The Italian added:
“Bentancur and Kulusevski are ideal prospects for Tottenham, because Tottenham are seeking young players they can develop and grow, not players who are ready. That is the issue.
“This is the vision and the philosophy of the club. It is inevitable that, if you want to grow quicker and if you want to be competitive more rapidly, you need players with a lot of experience, because they also raise the experience level of the overall team.
“But I repeat, I have realised now that this is the vision of the club.”
