An intriguing new name has emerged in Tottenham Hotspur’s managerial search this weekend…
What’s the word?
According to Italian transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, former Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has been “approached” by Spurs following their collapsed moves for Paulo Fonseca and Gennaro Gattuso.
He tweeted:
“Tottenham board back in contact with many candidates after Gattuso talks collapsed.
“Ernesto Valverde new name approached – not advanced yet. Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag always been appreciated, both are in the list – but ‘complicated’.
“Crazy but… race still open.”
Exciting new name
Of course, the North Londoners have been here plenty of times already in the two months since Jose Mourinho was sacked, so this sort of news has to be approached with caution.
The names that have come and gone in that time have been endless, ranging from Julian Naglesmann and Brendan Rodgers to Antonio Conte and even Mauricio Pochettino.
But Valverde is closer to that quartet than either of the aforementioned former Serie A coaches that have come close to being appointed.
The 57-year-old was quite a success at La Liga giants Barcelona, where he won two league titles, a Copa del Rey and a Supercopa, finishing his tenure with a 66.8% win rate, too.
You only have to look at the Catalan side since his departure to know just how good he was. They are yet to win La Liga since and haven’t got past the Champions League quarter-finals either.
In fact, the Spaniard left the Nou Camp possessing the fifth-best ever record in charge, behind the likes of Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique, as per Opta.
Valverde would certainly be a more exciting appointment than most of the candidates remaining and it seems like that’s a viewpoint already shared by many in N17.
“Would be a really good choice,” claimed one supporter. Another suggested that he is a “top coach” and that he’d take him at Spurs “all day long,” whilst a further member of the Lilywhites faithful believes he would “steady the ship” by playing “good football.”
It may be a small sample size but it’s a fair assessment of the general consensus right now.
Perhaps this is one final hope in what has been an absolute circus in North London.
AND in other news, Paratici could finally axe Lamela with Spurs swoop for “magical” £26m-rated “prodigy”…