After Igor Tudor left the club on Sunday afternoon, Tottenham are trying to persuade Roberto De Zerbi to change his mind and take on a role before the summer.
This is despite sources revealing that the former Brighton and Marseille boss prefers to wait until the summer to see if Spurs stay up, as well as assess the manager market at the end of the season. Tottenham are willing to offer the Italian a significant survival bonus and a signing fee to persuade him to take over as manager now.
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De Zerbi is Spurs’ leading choice for the summer, despite also considering Mauricio Pochettino, but the club have spent this week exploring a previous hire to help them survive the relegation zone in the Premier League.
There is optimism around north London that De Zerbi is eager to join Tottenham, but he may need some persuasion to speed up the final decision. With Bruno Salter leading training while the club search for their next manager – either in the short or long term – Spurs will be hoping to have someone in place by early this week, although no breakthrough has been made yet.
After leaving Marseille around the same time as Thomas Frank was sacked at Tottenham, many were surprised that they didn’t at least ask De Zerbi about a possible return to the Premier League.
The 46-year-old is best known for leading Brighton & Hove Albion to the Europa League, and has a track record of making an immediate impression wherever he goes. He seems to be a strong option for Spurs – if they can persuade him to shorten his breakthrough. His attacking, possession-based style is the hallmark of a tactician whose team has consistently helped young players exceed expectations almost overnight.
Sean Dyche included in the shortlist of options
Former Burnley, Everton and Nottingham Forest boss Sean Dyche prefers a longer contract that offers a payout if Spurs get rid of this summer, and he is among those on the shortlist thanks to his knowledge of survival in the Premier League, which allowed the Claret teams he led to win by any means necessary, even if it meant that football was ugly.
Ryan Mason, Ben Davies, Chris Hughton, Harry Redknapp and Glenn Hoddle have all been discussed and it is believed that a club legend could help stabilise the ship on a temporary basis. No official enquiries have been made yet, and Austrian Adi Hutter is also being considered for Tudor’s vacancy.
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