Tottenham Hotspur are making concrete advances to appoint Roberto De Zerbi as their new manager.
The Premier League side have endured a poor run this season, forcing them to part ways with Thomas Frank in February. Igor Tudor, who replaced the Dane, went out the exit door at the weekend.
Tottenham are in the process of appointing a new permanent manager, to help them avoid relegation.
After their last defeat to Nottingham Forest, they dropped to 17th spot, a point above 18th placed West Ham United.
On Monday, Sport Witness covered claims from Italy that De Zerbi is open to joining the north London club, who have offered him a five-year contract.
He has been without a club since leaving Marseille in February and could now join Spurs.
Latest on De Zerbi to Tottenham from Italy
Tuesday’s edition of Corriere della Sera also reports a five-year contract for the 46-year-old. This includes a salary worth £12m per year, signing on fee and an additional bonus if Tottenham Hotspur avoid relegation.
They are doing everything to appoint the Italian, who has asked for sporting and financial assurances.
His initial plan was to join the club after this season, also because he wanted to respect Tudor. However, the latter is no longer in charge, and his exit has ‘lessened the Brescian’s [De Zerbi] hesitation in accepting the offer’.
The two parties are working on an exit clause that allows De Zerbi to leave in the event of relegation. The report states ‘the feeling is that an agreement is imminent’.
Corriere dello Sport go a step ahead and claim Spurs have reached an agreement in principle with De Zerbi.
This is for a five-year deal that will include an option to terminate the contract in case Spurs drop out of the Premier League.
De Zerbi initially felt it’s best to start from the scratch after this season but Tottenham have changed his mind.
However, Spurs ‘pushed hard to convince him, and the possibility of a release [clause] would have convinced him’. If the move goes through, the former Brighton & Hove Albion manager will return to the Premier League.
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