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Roberto De Zerbi willing to take Tottenham job after private talks - on one condition
Mar 23 2026 19:10 · By Daniel Marsh/Senior Sports Reporter · 22 Reads
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Roberto De Zerbi is said to be open to taking over at Tottenham Hotspur as their new head coach this summer - if the beleaguered north London outfit retain their Premier League status.
Spurs have endured a calamitous campaign and parted company with Thomas Frank last month after finding themselves flirting with the relegation zone. But results and performances have failed to improve under Igor Tudor , with the club now just a point above the bottom three as a result of Sunday's chastening 3-0 home defeat against Nottingham Forest .
The Croatian was handed a contract until the end of the season with Tottenham set to appoint a new permanent head coach ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.
And De Zerbi is viewed as a top contender for the role after holding private talks with the club hierarchy.
The Telegraph report that De Zerbi, who is unattached after leaving Marseille last month, has spoken with Spurs and is viewed as a frontrunner for the vacancy alongside the club's popular former manager, Mauricio Pochettino .
Crucially, it's said that De Zerbi is open to taking charge at Tottenham. But that stance would change if the club's rotten form results in relegation.
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If De Zerbi does emerge ahead of Pochettino in the race to succeed Tudor - who will not be considered for the permanent job - then competition for the Italian's services would be fierce, with the report adding he could emerge as a target for Manchester United , who are also set to make a managerial appointment in the off-season, and Liverpool if they decide to part ways with Arne Slot .
De Zerbi won plenty of admirers in the Premier League for the sterling job he did at Brighton , where he was in charge for just shy of two years.
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His front-foot attacking style would satisfy disillusioned supporters, who made their feelings clear at the conclusion of Sunday's comprehensive defeat against a team who are also fighting for survival at the wrong end of the Premier League table.
Pochettino would be a popular choice with the fanbase given the excellent work he did during his previous spell at the club. He is unlikely to be available until later into the summer, though, given his current commitments with the United States national team.