Antonio Conte pays Liverpool the ultimate compliment ahead of Tottenham Hotspur clash

Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte insists Liverpool remain ‘one of the best teams in the world’ despite their stuttering form.

The Reds have made a slow start to the Premier League season and sit just ninth in the table, having taken 16 points from 12 matches.

Their position has surprised plenty given Jurgen Klopp’s side went close to an unprecedented quadruple last term - winning the FA Cup and Carabao Cup while finishing runners-up up in the Premier League and Champions League.

Liverpool now prepare to travel to third-placed Tottenham on Sunday (16.30 GMT). And Conte admits he’s surprised by the difficulties the Reds are having given they have an elite coach in Klopp at the helm.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Conte said: “A team we know very well. What we know about Liverpool, one of the best teams in the world.

They are having a bit of difficulty this season. I am surprised about this and that some people are trying to criticise Liverpool after what they have done in recent years. They have one of the best coaches in the world and fantastic players. At the same time, we have a lot of problems but we want to play an important game in front of our fans.

The relationship is normal. His story speaks of him, he has changed Liverpool. I remember very well, Liverpool didn’t win for a long period and he needed four years to bring Liverpool to be able to win again. This shows that it is important for a coach to have time. If people don’t know about football, they think that the story of this coach is a winner, it is not so.

“Jurgen shows that through the work and the matches and the transfer market that he improved Liverpool a lot and brought them to the top. For sure I can speak well about Jurgen and Liverpool and the players, they are definitely a good example for us.”