Next Tottenham boss exclusive: Major Julian Nagelsmann snag emerges to leave Levy considering only ‘100% willing’ option
Tottenham’s prospects of appointing Julian Nagelsmann as their new manager remain in serious jeopardy – and TEAMtalk has learned the only man “100% willing” to take on the job at this stage.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is currently in the process of seeking his fourth appointment in less than four years at the club. Antonio Conte was on Sunday removed from the hotseat after 16 months in charge, albeit with his current deal due to expire this summer.
And while Tottenham currently sit in fourth place and have a squad the envy of a plethora of sides the world over, fulfilling the vacancy is not an easy task for the club.
To illustrate those struggles, one recently-linked Dutchman has already been warned to avoid the ‘Tottenham managerial graveyard’.
Despite that, Levy continues to chase a number of high-calibre candidates.
And his top target is recently-disposed Bayern Munich coach Nagelsmann.
The 35-year-old was somewhat harshly-dumped by Bayern during the international break. To that end, suggestions from one German pundit claim Bayern officials were not easy with his relationship with his girlfriend; a story that was pretty big news in Germany.
Despite that, Nagelsmann remains in high demand.
To that end, Real Madrid are also seemingly keen amid doubts over Carlo Ancelotti’s future. And this week Chelsea have also been touted as another potential option with the pressure remaining on Graham Potter’s shoulders.
And while Tottenham have already made clear contact over the vacancy, it seems the former Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig boss is not about to jump quickly into his next role.
Nagelsmann keeping Tottenham waiting
Indeed, as Ben Jacobs has told TEAMtalk, he is fully prepared to make Levy wait for his answer.
“Tottenham have sensibly put a stop-gap in place [Cristian Stellini], because they realise that many of these elite managers are not going to decide now mid season,” he said.
“They don’t want the gamble of coming in and being judged on basically a handful of games. They would much rather look at the Tottenham project at the end of the season, see whether they’ve got Champions League football, and factor that into their thinking.
“And this is why there’s no guarantees for Tottenham, because Julian Nagelsmann will not be short of options. Almost certainly he will have an option that has Champions League Football next season. And if that’s not Tottenham, then they suddenly don’t become front-runners to land somebody like him.
“I think it’ll be the same for Luis Enrique, who has said that he’s very tempted by the Premier League. But is he prepared to join Tottenham as well without Champions League football? The advantage with Enrique is that [Fabio] Paratici likes Enrique and has a relationship with him both personally and professionally. But if Paratici is not there anymore (his position has been called into question this week), it changes the dynamic once again.
“Then there’s other names, that have been on this original shortlist. Marco Silva at Fulham, and he’s done a really good job, is an option. Roberto De Zerbi of Brighton, too, but he only joined in September. So those kinds of names, I think, go on the back burner.”
Jacobs claims there are a lot of moving factors over the job, not least what sort of money Tottenham will have to spend.
As a result, Nagelsmann is of the mindset to wait to see how Spurs finish the season.
‘Pochettino is only 100% option for Tottenham’
Indeed, the only sure-fire option open to Levy right now seems to be Mauricio Pochettino. And Jacobs says the former Tottenham coach is very much willing to return to the club.
“Pochettino is still very interesting. Even though there’s debate and division within Tottenham as to whether it would be right to bring him back, Daniel Levy, in particular, would absolutely do it and Pochettino would 100% walk back to Spurs. However, there’s other voices and factors and considerations.
“There’ll be reservations there until he works out who his sporting director is, and whether or not he’s got Champions League football. And that, I think, is why a lot of these elite level names are waiting.
“It’s also why Tottenham themselves have put an interim in place. They know that the situation in terms of their recruitment will not be clear.
“So what they’ll do is they’ll start to reach out, they’ll start to assess the lay of the land, they’ll start to talk to free agents. But in all likelihood, they’ll get the same questions from every candidate.
“Who’s going to be in charge of recruitment? How much control am I going to get? How much money will I have to spend with or without Champions League football? And, you know, how’s the project going to be impacted by all of these moving piece? In addition, of course, there even some suggestions that Tottenham are looking for investment as well. It’s quite unstable at the moment….
“The single-most important thing that Tottenham can do, in order to get the best possible next manager, is qualify for Champions League football. Then they’ll have a lot more leverage.”
READ MORE: Nagelsmann isn’t available just because he’s out of a job – surely he can do better than Spurs?
