Why Prandelli at Spurs wouldn’t be another Italian top-flight flop
Published:Only the harshest of critics can say that Tim Sherwood has done a bad job since being given the Tottenham reins on a permanent basis, yet there’s rumours abound that he’ll be replaced this summer.
Sherwood has only lost one league game since taking over from the maligned Andre Villas-Boas in December and is three points off the Champions League pace with 10 games to go, leaving his chances of finishing in the top four at 12/5 with Ladbrokes.
However, should the former Blackburn skipper fail to deliver on those ambitions, then there is a growing list of candidates ready to step in and have a crack at reaching Daniel Levy’s goals.
The latest, joining Louis van Gaal and Frank de Boer on the list, is Italian national coach Cesare Prandelli, who is thought to be ending his tenure as Azzuri boss after the World Cup in Brazil this summer.
Given that Italians, both on the field and in the dugout, have rarely adapted well to Premier League life, a potential move for the 56-year-old supremo is a strange one.
However, both Prandelli’s record and a considerable ally in the Tottenham camp, Technical Director and compatriot Franco Baldini, mean fears of an army of Alberto Aquilani’s turning out for the Lilywhites under the guise of another Paolo Di Canio can be dispelled.
Instead, Tottenham fans can look forward to a fluid, possession-based style of football, expect reasonable success if the new man is afforded enough time and shrewd signings in the transfer market should Prandelli come to White Hart Lane.
The north Italy native turned Fiorentina, his most prominent club role, from relegation-threatened strugglers to perennial European participants during his five years there. Signings like Stevan Jovetic, Adrian Mutu and Riccardo Montolivo all aided that success, while his time with Italy brought a Euro 2012 final and an unbeaten Rio qualification run to the nation.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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