The Telegraph have claimed that Roberto De Zerbi might have ruled himself out of the running for the Spurs job with his behaviour on Saturday as there were already concerns among the Tottenham hierarchy about the Italian’s temperament.
De Zerbi appeared to be off the rails even before the start of the game, confronting Cristian Stellini angrily before kick-off.
(Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
He continued to wind up the home dug-out through the game, which eventually ended in a tussle between the two benches and both coaches being sent off.
The Brighton boss was quite unapologetic about his actions after the game and refused to divulge exactly why he was upset with Stellini, although reports indicate that he took offence to the 48-year-old saying he had carried on the good work of his predecessor Graham Potter (Sky Sports).
The Telegraph now reveal that although De Zerbi was one of the names on Spurs’ shortlist to replace Antonio Conte at the end of the season, there were some at the North London club who felt that the 43-year-old could be a loose cannon.
The report states that his behaviour on Saturday would have confirmed those suspicions and might have ruled the former Sassuolo boss out of the running for the Tottenham job.
Spurs Web Opinion
De Zerbi certainly did not conduct himself with any grace on Saturday and would have gone down in the Tottenham hierarchy’s estimation.
However, I do not mind someone having a fiery character as long as their anger is primarily directed at the opposition and not one’s own players (as Mourinho and Conte were guilty of).
Brighton’s performance on Saturday only further confirmed my belief that De Zerbi would be the best man for the Spurs job after Nagelsmann among the candidates available.
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