Roberto De Zerbi: Tottenham close to announcing ex-Brighton boss as their new head coach
Roberto De Zerbi is set to be tasked with saving Spurs from Premier League relegation; Italian to become Spurs' third managerial appointment of the campaign after Igor Tudor failed to win a single Premier League game in a disastrous 44-day spell, leaving club one point above drop zone
Tuesday 31 March 2026 14:22, UK
Tottenham are close to announcing Roberto De Zerbi as their new head coach.
Sky Sports News understands talks between the club and the ex-Brighton boss went on through Monday night and into Tuesday. De Zerbi has been offered a long-term deal, understood to be up to five years.
It is understood De Zerbi is the unanimous choice at board and ownership level, with Spurs' executive team convinced he has the necessary credentials to make an instant impact.
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De Zerbi is set to be tasked with saving Spurs from relegation after Igor Tudor failed to win a single Premier League game in a disastrous 44-day spell.
Last season's Europa League winners sit one point above the bottom three with seven games to play.
The former Brighton boss will become Spurs' third managerial appointment of the season - and his first game in charge is a trip to Sunderland in the Premier League on Sunday April 12, live on Sky Sports.
Spurs pushed hard to convince De Zerbi to take over before the summer, after the Italian had previously indicated he wanted to take a break when he left Marseille in February.
Several Spurs fan groups have urged the club to rethink appointing De Zerbi over his backing of Mason Greenwood when he was Marseille boss.
Former Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood, who has repeatedly put his name in the frame to take over, has told Sky Sports that De Zerbi is the perfect choice long-term - but only if he can keep Spurs in the Premier League.
"I love his personality and the way his teams play," said the Sky Sports pundit. "But they can be open and can get hammered in some games - you can't get hammered between now and the end of the season.
"[De Zerbi] wanted to have a break after Marseille in February, but why didn't [Spurs] bring him in then? Why didn't they bring him in before Igor Tudor? You'd have given him another seven games to go at, then I would've had total confidence that he would keep them in the league."
De Zerbi's main task? Start winning and keep Spurs in the Premier League
Sky Sports News reporter Michael Bridge:
"There is no real long term if he can't succeed in the short term. Forget about, for now, putting Tottenham back into the European positions - they've been in Europe about 17, 18 times in the last 20-odd years. That's quite an impressive feat if you think about the amount of big clubs who aren't in Europe.
"Man Utd aren't in Europe currently, but he has to keep this club in the Premier League. It's serious now. He's got a decent squad. He's got a lot of injuries. It's not the squad of the [Mauricio] Pochettino era.
"It's not even the squad from the [Antonio] Conte era. He doesn't have [Harry] Kane, he doesn't have [Heung-Min] Son, but he still has players that should not be anywhere near the bottom three.
"And if he does get the job, his first job will be at Sunderland and they could well be in the bottom three when he takes that team to the Stadium of Light.
"Keep it simple - he talks about it takes him weeks on end to get his philosophy over, his style of play over. He's an experienced manager. He's been a Premier League manager. He knows exactly what it's like to go to Sunderland away and his first home game will be against, would you believe it, Brighton.
"He knows them pretty well too. It sounds simple but just start winning - and make Tottenham great again."
Analysis: Maverick De Zerbi offers hope that Spurs need
Sky Sports' Adam Bate:
It is the final roll of the dice. De Zerbi or bust for Tottenham. To dare is to do. Is this combustible character the galvanising motivator that this situation demands? Perhaps not. But it is an appointment that intrigues, excites and - importantly - offers hope.
Igor Tudor was a pragmatist on paper who proved anything but on the pitch. De Zerbi at least brings Premier League experience and the prospect of transforming the club's fortunes in the short and long term. If he can keep Spurs up, it could be a turning point.
For good and for bad, his reputation precedes him. An innovator in terms of how the game is played, his name was the most frequently mentioned when this journalist was working on a project about the future of football tactics a couple of summers ago.
Coach after coach who was consulted for that project cited De Zerbi as an inspiration. "He is producing something that is maybe unique in football right now," said one. "He has probably given Pep Guardiola his biggest headache," added another.
Why? "The distances, the positions, the body shape, the intentions that each player has in possession." These ideas still feel progressive. "How you control the rhythm and progress through space will be big in the future." His teams tend to be at the vanguard.
And yet, while Marseille are a hugely supported club with a proud history, there is a reason why De Zerbi did not land a bigger job after leaving Brighton. While his predecessor was handed the keys to Chelsea, something held Europe's giants back.
A brand of football not necessarily proven to deliver the top trophies was one aspect but De Zerbi's nature - the ability to manage up and down - was the more significant factor. Could he fit in? Nothing that he did at Marseille will have assuaged those concerns.
There were the intermittent threats to quit, accusing his players of humiliating him with their performance as early as November of his first season. By April, there were reports that he had refused to train the team with the players going above him to complain.
Players were scrapping in training in August - Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Rowe both being moved on. Marseille is a difficult club for anyone to manage but De Zerbi, 46, was often perceived to have inflamed things rather than being a calming influence.
Will Spurs fans be worried by any of this? Not really. They are desperate for anyone who can provide the club with a lift. It is in their hands, of course. And yet, they are vulnerable. Should West Ham go on any kind of run, it could prove too much for them.
If that is the case, a summer of recriminations awaits. Some supporters would have preferred De Zerbi last summer and many more will lament that they had to endure seven games of Tudor before turning to him now. This final roll of the dice has to work.
Is De Zerbi a good mid-season appointment?
Tottenham, who currently sit one point above the relegation zone, are in need of a head coach who can deliver instant results with just seven games left to secure their survival.
De Zerbi has established himself as a coach who instils a possession-based philosophy, creating teams that are praised for their attractive style of football.
However, the Italian's start at Brighton when he took over mid-season in 2022 following Graham Potter's departure would suggest he might struggle to have the required impact.
De Zerbi failed to win any of his first five Premier League games in charge of Brighton, drawing twice and losing three games, albeit facing a tough schedule.
When taking over at Serie A newcomers Benevento mid-season in 2017, De Zerbi's side were praised for the football they played, but were relegated from Italy's top flight.
De Zerbi failed to win any of his first nine games in charge of Benevento.
The Italian also struggled when taking over Palermo mid-season in 2016, winning just one of his 13 games before being sacked less than three months into the job.
'De Zerbi far from a safe pair of hands'
Ex-Tottenham boss Tim Sherwood speaking on Sky Sports News:
"I like him, I really do. I like his personality. I said many months ago that he would be the man to come into Tottenham.
"I would've picked him over Mauricio Pochettino for the long term because he plays that style that Tottenham fans want to play. He opens up the pitch, but not now. That style is not needed now, what they need now is a safe pair of hands. This is far from a safe pair of hands.
"I still like him. I love his personality and the way his teams play. But they can be open and can get hammered in some games - you can't get hammered between now and the end of the season.
"We saw his Marseille team play against Liverpool with an open style. He opens up the pitch, it's expansive the way he plays.
"We know how stubborn this man is. This man is hard to deal with, but I like him for that because he's got his own mind and does it his way, so that's my only reservation.
"I think if he can get them over the line, I think he's a perfect manager for Tottenham to have taking them forward.
"The main priority is just to keep them in the league. He would not be that firefighter-type manager who comes in for this seven-game period.
"He wanted to have a break after Marseille in February, but why didn't they bring him in then? Why didn't they bring him in before Igor Tudor? You'd have given him another seven games to go at, then I would've had total confidence that he would keep them in the league.
"They obviously didn't want him then. He was available, but they didn't want him."
