Relegation-battling Spurs appoint De Zerbi as manager

Tottenham Hotspur have appointed Roberto De Zerbi as their manager on a long-term contract, the Premier League club said on Tuesday, and the Italian coach has seven games to steer the North London side to safety.

Tottenham have turned to the former Brighton & Hove Albion manager to salvage a dreadful season which is in danger of ending in relegation from the top flight for the first time since 1977.

"Roberto was our number one target for the summer and we are very pleased to be able to bring him in now," Spurs Sporting Director Johan Lange said in a club statement.

"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."

The London club, who won the Europa League last term, are one point and one place above the Premier League relegation zone after 31 games, having not won in the league since December.

De Zerbi's first game will be at Sunderland on April 12, by which time Spurs could have slipped into the bottom three.

He succeeds Croatian Igor Tudor, who departed by mutual agreement on Sunday after seven games as interim manager following the sacking of Thomas Frank.

"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," De Zerbi said.

"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."

Spurs' form in 2026 is worse than all the clubs around them in the relegation battle and their confidence took another battering with a 3-0 home defeat by fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest, Tudor's last game in charge.

De Zerbi, Tottenham's sixth permanent manager since Mauricio Pochettino was sacked in 2019, will have little time to get his ideas across with the tricky visit to Sunderland followed by a home clash against his old club Brighton.

One of his priorities will be addressing the club's woeful home form which has resulted in only two Premier League wins at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium all season.