In a decisive move to arrest a alarming slide toward the Premier League’s relegation zone, Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed the appointment of Croatian manager Igor Tudor as interim head coach until the end of the season.
The 47-year-old former Juventus boss takes over a squad reeling from instability, tasked with harnessing their morale and steering the club clear of danger following the dismissal of Thomas Frank.
Tudor, who has verbally agreed to the short-term contract, arrives at a club in crisis. Spurs currently sit just five points above the bottom three after a dismal run of form, most recently punctuated by a 2-1 home defeat to Newcastle United.
The north London side will look to their new manager to provide an immediate “electroshock” to a team that has appeared low on confidence and defensive solidity.
The Croatian’s first test will be nothing short of a baptism by fire: a north London derby against Premier League leaders Arsenal on February 22. In his first address after the appointment was rubber-stamped, Tudor acknowledged the gravity of the situation and outlined his immediate objectives.
“It is an honour to join this club at an important moment,” Tudor said. “I understand the responsibility I have been handed and my focus is clear. To bring greater consistency to our performances and compete with conviction in every match. There is strong quality in this playing squad, and my job is to organise it, energise it and improve our results quickly”.
Known for his no-nonsense demeanor as a player during two spells at Juventus, Tudor has built a reputation across Europe for implementing a high-intensity, aggressive style of play.
His tactical identity is unmistakable: a preference for a 3-4-2-1 formation, relentless pressing, and a demand for supreme physical output from his players.
“He asks his players to run a lot. In a previous interview he said ‘If you don’t run, you don’t play’,” French football journalist Pierre-Etienne Minonzio told the BBC, recalling Tudor’s 2022-23 season at Marseille. “It was great to watch”.
This intense, man-marking approach was on full display during his time at Marseille and Lazio, where his teams ranked among the best in Europe for winning the ball high up the pitch.
George Boxall, a football journalist based in Marseille during Tudor’s tenure, described the experience for players. “His style is intense,” Boxall told BBC Sport. “The players do a hell of a lot of running. There’s lots of intensity, lots of pressing. He is a really strong personality”.
However, the appointment carries inherent risks. Tudor’s coaching career has been nomadic, with 12 clubs in 13 years, and his most recent stint at Juventus ended in October after an eight-match winless run.
Italian football journalist Daniele Verri noted that while Tudor initially brought the “Juventus DNA” of aggressive, vertical football, tension with the club’s hierarchy and a subsequent loss of control over the team led to his downfall.
The question remains whether he can replicate the short-term surges he managed at Lazio and Juventus—where he initially lost just one of his first nine games—without the squad burning out or turning against his methods.
The timing of the appointment gives Tudor a brief window to work with his squad, who have been given time off until Monday following their FA Cup exit.
He will inherit a squad severely depleted by injuries, missing key creative and defensive talents, yet one that boasts profiles suited to his system, such as Micky van de Ven and Pedro Porro.
The club’s hierarchy, who were impressed by his ability to improve teams on a short-term basis, view him strictly as a transitional figure to navigate the remainder of the campaign.
According to multiple reports, the club is already planning for a permanent appointment in the summer, with candidates like Roberto De Zerbi and former boss Mauricio Pochettino on the radar.