Tottenham are one of the biggest clubs in the world in terms of finances. As per Deloitte, they are among the Top 10 richest clubs in Europe.
However, that hasn’t often been reflected on the pitch, with just two major trophies in the last 18 years. They won the Carabao Cup in 2008 and the UEFA Europa League last season. Owners ENIC and former chairman Daniel Levy have often been deemed unambitious in football matters.
Perhaps the string of such decisions has eventually led to Tottenham being in a relegation battle this season.
With seven games remaining, they are just one point above the drop and have appointed Roberto De Zerbi as their new manager.
Simon Jordan slams Tottenham for De Zerbi offer
Tottenham parted ways with Igor Tudor on March 29 and were linked with numerous interim and permanent head coaches.
They have now gambled with De Zerbi, offering him a five-year contract. He is also reportedly set to be one of the highest-paid managers in the Premier League.
Former Crystal Palace chairman, Simon Jordan, has slammed Tottenham for offering the Italian such a contract. He said on talkSPORT:
“I don’t know why anyone would want to be handing out five-year contracts to managers that you don’t have a relationship with.
“They’ll have to get this clown in to fix a problem for the next seven games and give him an absolute king’s ransom to do it, and then guaranteed in 18 months fall out of them.
“He’ll be their saviour but they’ll all be clowns together, they’ll be all riding around the same car.
“Every aspect of my commercial mindset bristles against the idea that this is not a negotiation, this isn’t a commercial discussion, this is Tottenham Hotspur being told what they’re going to do by a manager. That won’t sit well in the longer game.”
“I don’t think he should be getting a five-year contract and I certainly don’t think the saucy sod should be getting a relegation get out of jail card but he will and they will and they’ll do it and so they might as well get on with it just give him what he wants.”
Only Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola will have a higher pay than De Zerbi in the Premier League.
A big gamble by Tottenham hierarchy
Regardless of their stance on De Zerbi’s abilities and morals, no Tottenham fan can deny that this is a huge gamble by the hierarchy. With survival on the line, they have chosen to go all out for the former Brighton manager.
Sporting Director Johan Lange has confirmed that De Zerbi was their prime target for this summer. They then persuaded him to join now and try to help the club avoid relegation. If it fails, it would be a huge financial hit, considering they are also currently paying Thomas Frank’s package after his sacking.
Spurs will next be in action on April 12 when they face Sunderland away in the Premier League. They will desperately hope to get a good performance and a win to get some momentum for their remaining fixtures.
