Roberto De Zerbi is expected to inform Tottenham Hotspur later on Monday whether he is ready to accept a five-year contract and immediately take up the position of the club's new head coach. As revealed by The Telegraph earlier this month, Tottenham have held talks with De Zerbi, and the Italian manager has become their top target.
However, to date, De Zerbi has insisted on wanting to take up the post after the end of the season, though negotiations between the two parties are still ongoing. De Zerbi has also attracted interest from Manchester United's senior management, but the possibility of Michael Carrick permanently taking charge at Old Trafford is growing stronger.
De Zerbi is eager to return to the Premier League. He left Marseille earlier this year and has remained open to managing Tottenham. The key issue now is whether he is willing to take over the team immediately after Igor Tudor's dismal departure after just 44 days in charge. Tottenham are currently only one point above the relegation zone, with seven matches remaining, and have gone 13 consecutive games without a win.
De Zerbi has no interest in managing in the EFL Championship, which makes it possible for a release clause to be included in the contract allowing him to leave at the end of the season if Tottenham are relegated this term. Nevertheless, this approach is not ideal in terms of perception—is this a five-year long-term contract, or just a short-term collaboration for seven matches? What does this say about De Zerbi's commitment to the team?
So far, the 44-year-old former Brighton & Hove Albion manager has strongly resisted the idea of immediately taking over Tottenham, but the atmosphere of negotiations on Sunday evening was more positive, and the two sides will continue their discussions on Monday. However, negotiations are still mainly focused on taking over in the summer, even though Tottenham are making every effort to push for their top target to take up the post now and hope to reach an agreement that can facilitate another one.
