Tottenham have sacked Cristian Stellini as caretaker manager in the wake of the 6-1 humiliation at Newcastle on Sunday, and replaced him with another interim – his assistant, Ryan Mason – as the crisis engulfing the club took another turn.
Stellini had been promoted into the role after Antonio Conte’s exit on 26 March, the chairman, Daniel Levy, having passed over Mason. The idea was for Stellini to lead the push for a Premier League top-four finish over the remaining weeks of the season but he lasted only four games, the extent of the capitulation at Newcastle raising fears he would be unable to motivate the players for the challenges ahead.
Mason will take charge for the rest of the season as he did in the final weeks of 2020-21 after the sacking of José Mourinho, when he won four of six league games but lost the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City.
Levy, who described the Newcastle result as unacceptable and devastating, adding that he took ultimate responsibility, confirmed that Stellini’s coaching staff had also departed. When Conte left, only his brother Gianluca went with him. The other Italian coaches have now gone with Stellini.
Levy led an inquest into the Newcastle debacle on Monday morning, speaking to the player committee comprising Hugo Lloris, Harry Kane, Eric Dier and Pierre-Emile Højbjerg.
Spurs have lurched from one body blow to the next since the post-World Cup restart, taking in the FA Cup exit at Sheffield United, Conte’s meltdown after the draw at Southampton and the resignation of the managing director of football, Fabio Paratici, last Friday. Paratici had lost an appeal in Italy against his ban for alleged false accounting from his Juventus days.
The uncertainty over Kane also rumbles on. The striker, out of contract in June next year, has given no indication that he wants to sign a new deal. Manchester United are interested in signing him.
Levy, who maintains that Kane is not for sale, needs to get the next permanent managerial appointment right and he hopes to persuade Julian Nagelsmann to accept the post in the summer. Nagelsmann, sacked by Bayern Munich on 24 March, pulled out of the running to take over at Chelsea last Friday; the west London club are primed to hire Mauricio Pochettino, a former Spurs manager.
Levy has made no move to go back to Pochettino despite the obvious attraction of him, especially his popularity with the fans, who have sung his name at recent matches. It has led to the feeling that Levy has somebody lined up for the end of the season. Luis Enrique, the former Barcelona and Spain manager, is another option.
The immediate priority is to stabilise after Newcastle, when the team were 5-0 down after 21 minutes, bankrupt on every level. Stellini had started with a new 4-3-3 formation which he ditched in the 23rd minute, bringing on a third centre‑half, Davinson Sánchez, for the midfielder Pape Sarr.
What was most galling for supporters who made the 10-hour round trip from north London was the lack of heart in the performance, the feeling that hardly any of the players were really trying, fuelling the belief Stellini is a busted flush.
The Italian, who took four points from his four games as the interim, had managed once previously at first-team level – at Alessandria in Serie C in 2017-18 when he lasted 16 matches, winning three. There was no new manager bounce at Spurs as – apart from the 23-minute experiment against Newcastle that backfired so spectacularly – he changed little from Conte’s tenure.
Spurs face Manchester United at home on Thursday, when the mood could be toxic, before travelling to Liverpool on Sunday. They remain fifth, although their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League are slim.
Levy said in a statement: “Sunday’s performance against Newcastle was wholly unacceptable. It was devastating to see. We can look at many reasons why it happened and whilst myself, the board, the coaches and players must all take collective responsibility, ultimately the responsibility is mine.”
