Tottenham Hotspur have Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Italiano on their "list" of managerial candidates, according to Sky Sports reporter Gianluca Di Marzio.
Who is Vincenzo Italiano?
Italiano is a 45-year-old coach currently in charge of Serie A outfit Fiorentina having first been appointed there back in July 2021, and so far, he’s been in the dugout at the Artemio Franchi Stadium for a total of 101 matches, but his future beyond the summer is currently uncertain.
The Germany-born boss will be out of contract at the end of next season meaning that now is the time that clubs are likely to come sniffing around for his services having not yet signed an extension, and he’s already been linked with Napoli as a potential successor to Luciano Spalletti, but they aren’t the only ones to have identified him as it would appear that he has another admirer based in the Premier League.
Are Spurs appointing Italiano?
Speaking to Fiorentina.it (via Sport Witness), Di Marzio revealed that Tottenham are monitoring Italiano as one of the candidates to take over from Ryan Mason ahead of the 2023/24 term. The reporter said:
“It’s inevitable that he will end up in the crosshairs of big clubs like Napoli. If De Laurentiis were to bet on Italiano, I would find it normal. I know he is also popular abroad. He is on Tottenham’s list. Many say that Italiano has a €10m clause, but there is no release clause to release him from Fiorentina."
Italiano is a less high-profile name compared to the likes of Leicester City’s former boss Brendan Rodgers and Celtic’s Ange Postecoglou who Spurs have been linked with, but having been lauded as an “exciting” manager by journalist Josh Bunting, he could be a promising appointment for the long-term future in N17.
The Karlsruhe native, whose preferred formation is an attacking 4-3-3, has won 50, drawn 19 and lost 32 of his 101 matches at Fiorentina, with results this season seeing his side currently just ten points away from qualifying for Europe, but even before joining, he was busy working his magic elsewhere.
During his time at Trapani and Spezia Calcio, the experienced coach secured back-to-back promotions, firstly in 2018/19 followed by in 2019/20, so knows what it takes to compete and be successful at a high level, so whilst there would be an element of risk to this swoop given he’s not as well known, Daniel Levy will like the fact that he's proven himself and may be willing to give him a chance.