Igor Tudor given answer on full-time Tottenham role already as official line now revealed
Igor Tudor will be a contender to become Tottenham’s next permanent boss if he does well in his interim stint.
That is according to BBC Sport journalist Sami Mokbel, who made the remarks hours after Tudor was chosen to lead Tottenham for the rest of the season on Saturday.
The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium outfit have moved quickly to appoint a caretaker boss following Thomas Frank‘s sacking on Thursday.
The former Juventus manager has signed a deal until the end of the campaign, with Spurs languishing in 16th in the Premier League.
But, just as interim Manchester United boss Michael Carrick has a shot at getting the permanent gig after a great start to his spell at Old Trafford, Tudor could be in the running for the Tottenham post, too.
Igor Tudor not one of Tottenham’s top managerial targets
Following Frank’s departure after less than eight months in the role, Tottenham have been linked with a host of managers, some predictable, some not so much.
Former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino is one of the favourites to take over; however, that may not happen until after this summer’s World Cup, as he is leading the United States at the tournament.
Roberto De Zerbi, who recently resigned from his head coach role at Marseille, is also in the running, as is Tottenham coach and surprise candidate John Heitinga, among others.
Now, Mokbel has outlined Tudor’s chances of becoming a permanent part of the furniture at Tottenham when this summer rolls around.
He said on BBC Match of the Day: “The official line is if he [Tudor] does well, he will become a contender for the permanent manager’s job, which they will look to do at the end of the season.
“But my sense is that Tottenham are very much looking at this as a short-term fix.”
He also thought that Pochettino and De Zerbi were more likely candidates.
- Read more: ‘Tottenham to offer Roberto De Zerbi lucrative interim deal’ before Mauricio Pochettino return
Does Tudor’s managerial record hurt his chances at Tottenham?
Since going into management in 2013 with Hajduk Split, Tudor has had a whopping 11 managerial stints with nine different clubs.
He spent nearly two years at the Croatian side before moving to PAOK in Greece, where he lasted 45 matches.
Brief spells in Turkey with Karabukspor and Galatasaray followed in 2016 and 2017, respectively, before having short stays at Udinese in 2018 and 2019.
Tudor returned to Split in 2020 before having subsequent tenures at Hellas Verona, Marseille, Lazio, and, most recently, Juventus.
| Igor Tudor’s top five longest managerial stints | Win percentage |
| Hajduk Split: April 2013-February 2015; 78 games, 35 wins, 21 draws, 22 losses | 44.87 |
| PAOK: June 2015-March 2016; 45 games, 17 wins, 17 draws, 11 losses | 37.78 |
| Galatasaray: February 2017-December 2017; 34 games, 19 wins, four draws, 11 losses | 55.88 |
| Hellas Verona: September 2021-May 2022; 36 games, 14 wins, 11 draws, 11 losses | 38.89 |
| Marseille: July 2022-June 2023; 48 games, 27 wins, eight draws, 13 losses | 56.25 |
But the fact that his longest stay was in his first job, where he was in charge for just 78 games, may be a cause for concern for Tottenham. Tudor was also sacked at Juventus, PAOK, Galatasaray, and Udinese.
His sole piece of silverware as a manager came in the Croatian Cup in 2013, and since then, he has been known as a “firefighter”, someone who can get teams out of trouble when in a bind.
His win percentage as a manager is 45.75, and while he will have a chance at Tottenham, it may be a surprise to see him get the job permanently.
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