Share and Follow
When Igor Tudor was brought on board, it was anticipated that he would bring an end to a troubling chapter. Unfortunately, his tenure has not only failed to address the issues but arguably exacerbated them. Now, with his departure, Tottenham’s new leadership faces a pivotal decision.
Chief Executive Vinai Venkatesham and Sporting Director Johan Lange find themselves in a critical position. The luxury of mistakes is gone, and their upcoming choice for a new manager is crucial to avoid repeating past missteps.
In a surprising twist, Glenn Hoddle has emerged as a serious contender for the role, despite having stepped away from management nearly two decades ago. Taking this path would certainly be a daring move, yet it offers the possibility of rallying the fanbase around a shared goal.
Another name in the mix is De Zerbi, whose potential appointment could bear the influence of former Sporting Director Fabio Paratici. Despite Paratici’s recent transition to Fiorentina, his impact on the club lingers.
Previously, Paratici had shown a strong interest in De Zerbi as a successor to Thomas Frank before the holiday season. However, Venkatesham and Lange’s commitment to Frank, whom they managed to recruit from Brentford, played a significant role in the eventual parting of ways with Paratici.
Igor Tudor’s 43 days at the helm have illustrated the danger of bringing in someone who is unfamiliar with English footballÂ
Glenn Hoddle has emerged as a genuine candidate despite not managing for nearly 20 years
Tudor’s 43 days at the helm, though, have illustrated the danger of bringing in someone who is unfamiliar with English football.
A series of poor decisions has led the illustrious London club into peril, and if the next boss cannot halt the slide, they will be relegated from the top flight for the first time since 1977.
Victory for West Ham against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Friday week will plunge Spurs into the Premier League’s bottom three, before their next outing at Sunderland.
After Sunderland come home games against Brighton, Leeds and Everton, and away games at Wolves, Aston Villa and Chelsea.
Most of the players are away on international duty, and by the time they return to training at the end of the week, Tudor’s successor and a new coaching team should be in position.
Few of them will be sorry to see Tudor gone.
He was appointed on Valentine’s Day to replace Thomas Frank, who was sacked three days earlier, but Spurs took only one point from his five Premier League games in charge and crashed out of the Champions League.
They scored nine goals in those seven games and conceded 20.
His short tenure started badly with a 4-1 home defeat against Arsenal, after which Tudor confessed the problems were far worse than he had anticipated, because of the injury pile-up and its impact on physical condition and morale.
Then came a poor performance in a defeat at Fulham and a first-half shambles in what was a key home fixture against Crystal Palace.
Spurs took the lead through Dominic Solanke in the 34th minute, only to collapse when Micky van de Ven was sent off four minutes later for a foul that conceded a penalty.
Most of the players are away on international duty, and by the time they return to training at the end of the week, Tudor’s successor and a new coaching team should be in position
Spurs collapsed against Crystal Palace when Micky van de Ven was set off four minutes after they had taken the lead
Palace equalised from the spot and quickly scored two more before half-time as 10-man Spurs hit the self-destruct button, something which has become a worrying trend during this high-stress period of the season.
Something similar happened in the opening 15 minutes of the first leg of the Champions League tie against Atletico Madrid.
Tudor selected Antonin Kinsky in goal to give Guglielmo Vicario a break, but Kinsky made two costly slips in the opening 15 minutes and was substituted with Spurs 3-0 down.
Spurs went 4-0 down before they rallied and lost 5-2, a deficit too big to turn around despite victory in the second leg.
That will go down as Tudor’s only win, and it is ironic that it was inspired by two Xavi Simons goals.
Simons has been the only creative spark since the turn of the year but was used sparingly by Tudor after contributing little from a position wide on the left in a 4-4-2 formation at Fulham.
The Atletico dead-rubber win, together with a late equaliser in the previous game, a 1-1 draw at Liverpool, offered some hope, but it vanished against Nottingham Forest.
Like the Palace game, the Forest showdown was billed as must-win in the survival fight. As against Palace, there was a big build-up and Spurs flickered with promise but ultimately went under and conceded another three goals at home.
They have been far too easy to score against, and Tudor, like Frank and other predecessors, has been unable to strike the perfect balance between protecting one goal while threatening the other with this group of players.
The problems at Spurs run deeper than the head coach; nevertheless, the Forest defeat would prove the final act of the short Tudor era in N17.
James Maddison – pictured here talking to Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice during an England training session at Tottenham’s training centre – is expected to return before the season’s end
January arrival Conor Gallagher was regularly cast aside by Igor Tudor, alongside Xavi Simons
It ended with profound personal sadness as the 47-year-old Croatian was informed of the death of his father, Mario, straight after the final whistle at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
There was great sympathy from all connected with the club as he left London, but his spell in charge has been short and sour and will be remembered with no great fondness.
Players railed against Tudor’s surly brand of passive aggression, which spilled into his media duties, where he had a habit of tutting disapprovingly at questions he didn’t like and glaring at inquisitors.
Fans, like everyone else, have been bemused by wild deviations in his tactical plans, from a back three to a back four, with one, two or three up front, players out of position and expensive signings such as Simons and Conor Gallagher regularly cast aside.
His trusted assistant Ivan Javorcic ran into work permit complications and was unable to join him at Spurs.
Maybe the last six weeks would have been different with Javorcic at his side but, as it turned out, there was nothing Tudor could do to arrest the slide in the short time available.
Spurs remain deep in a rut of relegation form. They have not won any of their last 13 Premier League games, taking only five points from 39 available in 2026.
With seven games to play, the only priority is to stay up. If there are positives, they come from the players closing in on a return from injury, including Rodrigo Bentancur and Mohamed Kudus.
Tudor said he expected James Maddison to be fit before the end of the season.
Tudor, though, will not be in charge. His tenure lasted 43 days and seven games, one won, albeit meaninglessly, one drawn and five lost. His goalkeeping coach Tomislav Rogic and fitness coach Riccardo Ragnacci leave with him.
Coach Bruno Saltor, the former Brighton defender, will remain at the club to take training for those players not on international duty until the next head coach is confirmed.