Tottenham are pushing to convince Roberto De Zerbi to become their new manager before the end of the season, sources have told ESPN.
Spurs are looking for their third manager of the season after parting company with Igor Tudor on Sunday.
Tudor, who only replaced Thomas Frank last month, won just one of his seven games in charge as Spurs slipped closer to the Premier League relegation zone.
Tottenham currently sit 17th — just one point and one place above the bottom three — and sources say they are confident of appointing a successor to Tudor in good time before Spurs’ next game, a league clash at Sunderland on April 12.
Sources have told ESPN that De Zerbi and USMNT boss Mauricio Pochettino are at the top of the club’s shortlist. However, Pochettino is committed to leading the USMNT into this summer’s World Cup while De Zerbi is out of work after leaving Marseille.
Initial talks had taken place between Spurs and De Zerbi with the Italian indicating he was open to joining the club at the end of the season if they stayed in the Premier League.
However, Tudor’s departure and Tottenham’s current malaise — they have not won a league game since Dec. 28 — have accelerated their need for a new head coach and Spurs are hoping to convince De Zerbi to join now.
Sources say the club’s preference is for a permanent appointment but it remains to be seen whether the 46-year-old — who spent two years at Brighton up to 2024 — will agree to join Tottenham in their perilous state.
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– Igor Tudor’s 44-day tenure at Tottenham Hotspur: A timeline of failure
Alternatives include former Monaco boss Adi Hutter but sources have suggested Spurs would ideally like to appoint someone with Premier League experience.
Former Spurs managers Harry Redknapp, Tim Sherwood and Glenn Hoddle have all been linked with the role as has ex-Tottenham striker Robbie Keane, currently at Ferencvaros and ex-Nottingham Forest, Burnley and Everton manager Sean Dyche.
