Igor Tudor had been in charge at Tottenham Hotspur for just 44 days before the Croatian had to leave due to his notorious lack of success. Now Roberto de Zerbi is set to take over.
As Spurs confirmed on Tuesday, Roberto de Zerbi will succeed the recently sacked Igor Tudor as coach. According to the club, the Italian will receive a “long-term contract”. According to media reports, he has committed himself to the club until 2031 and will become one of the highest-earning coaches in the Premier League. “I am here because I believe in these ambitions and have signed a long-term contract to make them a reality,” the coach is quoted as saying in the club’s press release.
Tottenham are hoping to finally get back on track. After Thomas Frank, who was once brought in from Brentford, had to vacate his post at the Londoners after just seven months in office, Tudor (formerly of Juventus) was supposed to lead the Londoners back into calmer waters. However, the Croatian made a huge mess of the task: After just seven games and a drop to 17th place in the table, he was out of a job.
De Zerbi enjoys a good reputation in England
Now it’s de Zerbi’s turn. The Italian has plenty of international experience, having already worked at Palermo, Benevento, Sassuolo and Shakhtar Donetsk. In England, he made a name for himself as coach of Brighton Hove & Albion, which he led straight to 6th place in his first season in 2022/23 – the first time in history that the Seagulls qualified for the European Cup.
“He is one of the most creative and innovative coaches in world soccer and brings a wealth of experience at the highest level,” said Tottenham’s sporting director Johan Lange, explaining the signing. They had originally wanted to bring in de Zerbi in the summer, but now the deal has been finalized earlier.
Despite a valid contract and a respectable eleventh place in his second year, he left Brighton in the summer of 2024 to join Olympique Marseille. The 46-year-old promptly led the club from the south of France to the runners-up spot in his first season. In the current season, however, things have not gone so smoothly, with the club repeatedly stumbling unexpectedly in the league and also missing out on the knockout phase of the Champions League. As a result, OM only played third fiddle in Ligue 1 behind serial champions PSG and Lens – and de Zerbi was forced to leave in mid-February after a 5-0 defeat to PSG.
In England, however, the former Napoli midfielder (once trained in the Milan youth team) continues to enjoy a high reputation – also due to his attacking style of play, which he had already successfully implemented in Italy at Sassuolo.