Tottenham have stepped up their efforts to bring Roberto De Zerbi on board after parting ways with Igor Tudor yesterday.
The Croatian lasted just 44 days at the club and picked up just one Premier League point, a run of form that has pushed them close to the relegation zone.
While other candidates have been linked, De Zerbi has emerged as the frontrunner for the Tottenham job, with the Italian currently a free agent after leaving Marseille by mutual consent in February.
And now, if reports from Italy are to be believed, the North London outfit have made a massive breakthrough in their pursuit of him.
De Zerbi open to joining Tottenham immediately
Initially, it was reported that De Zerbi had inhibitions about the Tottenham job, with the club currently embroiled in a relegation dog fight.
Now, however, Gianluca di Marzio reports that he is open to accepting the offer immediately, with the club putting a mammoth five-year deal on the table for him.
Guarantees have also been made in terms of squad planning and transfers as Tottenham continue to push hard to land their main man.
The report also states that the next few hours will decide the fate of this move, one way or another, so Tottenham fans across the world will keep their eyes peeled.
While it initially looked like another interim boss could arrive on a short-term deal, the hierarchy have seemingly advanced their search for a new, permanent manager by a few months.
De Zerbi needs to win over Tottenham faithful
After his decision to publicly back Mason Greenwood, Tottenham fan groups launched a ‘Say No To De Zerbi’ campaign, urging the club to uphold its morals.
On the pitch, he is clearly one of the brightest footballing minds around but has proved to be a difficult character to work with, having fallen out with the club’s hierarchy at Brighton and Marseille.
Tottenham simply can’t afford such drama as their current situation is dire, so there is an obvious risk involved with De Zerbi’s potential arrival.
Read More: Roberto De Zerbi to Tottenham is truly a terrible idea from a moral and footballing standpoint
A combination of all the aforementioned factors means the Italian has a lot of work to do to win over the Tottenham faithful, who are in desperate need of a long-term manager to change the fortunes of the club.
The need of the hour, however, is to avoid relegation, with the club just a point above 18th-placed West Ham United in the Premier League table.
