Spurs parted company with Igor Tudor on Sunday afternoon after five defeats in seven matches during a shambolic 44-day reign and immediately set their sights on trying to lure number one summer target De Zerbi to join mid-season.
After days of negotiations given De Zerbi’s initial preference to assess his options in the summer, the 46-year-old accepted Tottenham’s proposal and despite relegation being a realistic prospect with seven matches of a terrible Premier League campaign left, it is understood no relegation clause has been included.
De Zerbi said: “I am delighted to be joining this fantastic football club, which is one of the biggest and most prestigious in the world.
“In all my discussions with the club’s leadership, their ambition for the future has been clear – to build a team capable of reaching great achievements, and to do that playing a style of football that excites and inspires our supporters. I am here because I believe in that ambition and have signed a long-term contract to give everything to deliver it.
“Our short-term priority is to climb the Premier League table, which will be the complete focus until the final whistle of the last game of the season. I’m looking forward to getting out on the training pitch and working with these players to achieve that.”
The appointment of De Zerbi will not be universally popular among the Spurs fanbase after three supporter groups on Friday urged the north London club to not appoint De Zerbi due to his past association with Mason Greenwood at Marseille.
Proud Lilywhites, Women of the Lane and Spurs Reach all expressed their concerns with ‘No to De Zerbi’ statements and it is understood Tottenham carefully considered and discussed the comments and sentiments around Greenwood with De Zerbi during negotiations.
Former Manchester United forward Greenwood was charged in October 2022 with one count of attempted rape, one count of controlling and coercive behaviour and one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm over allegations relating to a woman after images and videos were posted online.
The Crown Prosecution Service dropped the charges in February 2023 owing to “a combination of the withdrawal of key witnesses and new material that came to light”, which meant there was “no realistic prospect of conviction”. Greenwood has since resumed his career and joined Marseille in 2024.
In November, De Zerbi described Greenwood as a “good guy” who had paid a “heavy price” and added: “It saddens me what happened in his life, because I know a totally different person than the one who was described.”
Even without a potentially split fanbase, De Zerbi faces an enormous job at Tottenham given they are one point above the bottom three after a 13-match winless run in the Premier League, but the former Shakhtar boss was always the club’s number one target.
It is understood Spurs attempted to bring De Zerbi in after Thomas Frank was dismissed on February 11, but it was too soon after his departure from Marseille during the same week.
However, with De Zerbi viewed as both the best available short-term option and favoured long-term for his Premier League experience, tactical acumen and desire to play attacking football, Tottenham made another effort to secure his services and have been successful.
Sporting director Johan Lange said: “Roberto was our number one target for the summer and we are very pleased to be able to bring him in now.
“He is one of the most creative and forward-thinking coaches in world football, and brings with him a wealth of experience at the highest level, including in the Premier League.”
This decision rules out a potential emotional return for Mauricio Pochettino and De Zerbi faces a sizeable task to keep Tottenham up after a disastrous run of two wins in 22 league fixtures, but ahead of a debut at Sunderland on April 12, key figures at the club will hope this move can ensure top-flight status is secured.