Roberto De Zerbi responds as Tottenham make a new move to replace Igor Tudor
Tottenham have spoken to a senior manager about replacing Igor Tudor ‘this week’, with the tactician responding to interest from Spurs.
Tottenham are eyeing a number of managers to replace Igor Tudor
A week that began with Tottenham in full-blown managerial trouble is ending, in some ways, in more chaos.
As the international break offers a short break from Premier League action, ENIC has reportedly been on fire with the phone and burning with patience in equal measure, and the picture from Spurs in Tudor’s search for Tudor’s replacement is one of rejected paths, blocked routes and few direct answers.
It started out promising enough – on the surface at least.
Adi Hutter’s name had been hotly debated earlier in the week, with French newspaper L’Equipe confirming that the Austrian had been contacted and negotiations had begun.
TEAMtalk backed that up, although Sky Germany threw cold water on the idea of tangible progress, insisting that no official talks had yet taken place.
The title-winning manager is determined to replace Igor Tudor as Tottenham make contact with him
Spurs are close to a tactician.
Hutter, 56, out of a job since leaving Monaco in October, was seen as a short-term option – but his lack of experience in the Premier League did little to ease concerns over whether he represented real progress.
Fabrizio Romano spent most of the week moving the needle on a very important name.
Roberto De Zerbi, the Italian who turned Brighton into a top-six side and guided Marseille to second place in Ligue 1, remains a long-time Spurs stalwart.
The 46-year-old has just one trophy on his CV – a Ukrainian Super Cup triumph from his time at Shakhtar Donetsk – but Pep Guardiola has called him one of the ‘most influential managers of the last 20 years’.
Romano has confirmed that publicly – De Zerbi is “a favorite since June,” and is open to discussing a role in the summer as long as Spurs survive.
He also played with one line that kept the door slightly open, saying: “Let’s see if Tottenham decides to make another attempt for De Zerbi now.”
Apparently they did, but TEAMtalk says it’s useless.
Roberto De Zerbi says no to Tottenham after new approach ‘this week’
Indeed, Tottenham made a new approach to De Zerbi this week and received a “not now” answer to their problems.
It is the latest in a consistent pattern dating back to the past few weeks in which the former Brighton and Marseille boss has refused all calls to commit to an immediate return to management.
Sky Italy and Gianluca Di Marzio have already made it clear: De Zerbi has no intention of returning to the dugout before the summer, no matter which club asks.
His departure from Marseille in February following the 5-0 thrashing by PSG was short-lived, and he is determined to step back, assess his options and return at a time of his own choosing.
It is not a particular rejection of Tottenham.
The Italian will consider Spurs in the summer and is open to negotiations – the project, the team, the stadium all have their appeal. But a rescue mission in danger of being relegated mid-season is not what he has in mind, and no amount of insistence from north London has moved that position.
Whether another attempt might end up changing his mind is, technically, an open question.
With the Sunderland game on April 12 looming and Tudor’s future still undecided, Tottenham are fast running out of time to gamble on a response.
