Tottenham Hotspur explored poaching Fulham manager Marco Silva but he wanted to stay with the Cottagers

Tottenham Hotspur explored poaching Marco Silva from Fulham , but the Portuguese manager wanted to stay with the Cottagers, according to the Sun . The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium club have reached an agreement to appoint Roberto De Zerbi as their new boss, but it appears they attempted to lure Silva away from their London rivals. The Fulham manager is out of contract at the end of the season and getting him to leave with seven league games remaining would have been very tricky.

Spurs have gone for De Zerbi, handing him a five-year deal which would make the Italian one of the highest-paid bosses in the history of the club. It would also make the 46-year-old one of the highest-paid managers in the Premier League, and an announcement to make it official is expected in the next 24 hours . De Zerbi knows the Premier League from his time at Brighton & Hove Albion, and the onus is on him to keep Tottenham up against all odds.

They are currently 17th in the Premier League table, just a point and a place above the relegation zone. However, Spurs will be in the bottom three by their next game against Sunderland on Sunderland should West Ham United beat Wolverhampton Wanderers on Friday. De Zerbi could do with a favour from Wolves as starting his reign in the drop zone is the last thing he wants.