Paratici must seal Conte reunion to get shambolic Spurs back on track

Tottenham’s transfer chief Fabio Paratici is the workaholic who’s always on his phone and is lauded for his animated, yet passionate, support… while his decision to hire Nuno was a dud, he can get Spurs back on track by reuniting with Antonio Conte

• Tottenham appointed Fabio Paratici as their director of football earlier this year
• The ex-Juventus chief has made his presence known since arriving in London
• He’s made a number of shrewd signings and has become a cult figure with fans
• However, his decision to appoint Nuno Espirito Santo has fallen flat on its face
• Paratici can get Spurs’ season back on track by appointing serial winner Conte 

Gone are the days where your average Joe wouldn’t have clue who was running the show behind the scenes… in football nowadays, those at board level are almost celebrities in their own right. 

Earlier this summer, one non-playing arrival down the Tottenham High Road arguably made the most noise among Spurs fans: when the club appointed Fabio Paratici as their new managing director of football, taking over from Steve Hitchen who was appointed in 2019.

Before Hitchen, Franco Baldini was the last man to take up the role before leaving in 2015 – a change which saw chairman Daniel Levy take charge when it came to scouting and signing players, as well as appointing new managers.

Tottenham appointed ex-Juve chief Fabio Paratici as their director of football earlier this year

During this time, fans began to question much of Levy’s transfer policy, which also saw Spurs go a whole season without making a single signing in either transfer window with Mauricio Pochettino at the helm.

With Hitchen taking charge, many grew restless as the club missed out on targets like Bruno Fernandes and Ruben Dias, leading Levy to appoint the man who helped bring Paul Pogba and Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus.

And so, after a difficult 2020-21 campaign, Paratici was hired in June of this year to get the club back on track and competing after years of under-performing.

One of his first tasks was to finally bring an end to Spurs’ never-ending search for a new manager following the sacking of Jose Mourinho in April.

Spurs had looked to appoint Mourinho’s successor quickly but with a number of key targets turning them down, the search for a new boss dragged on.

Paratici put his faith in Nuno but was forced to pull the trigger after just four months in charge

Paratici’s decision to hire seventh-choice Nuno Espirito Santo was deemed an underwhelming appointment with the Spurs fans, given how they had seen how stale his final year at Wolves had become.

Nevertheless, Paratici was adamant about Nuno coming, especially when it was reported that he had tried to lure the Portuguese to Juventus the summer before.

But more on Nuno later.

Alongside his search for a new manager, Paratici got straight down to business with bringing in new recruits to help improve the squad in what is a transitional period for the club.

The Italian received plaudits for getting rid of deadwood, including ageing and injury-prone players at the club. 

Paratici has brought in a number of decent, young signings while he offloaded deadwood. Pictured is defender Cristian Romero, who was also linked with Barcelona in the summer

Toby Alderweireld, Moussa Sissoko and Erik Lamela were all sold on, making room on the wage bill for new additions while the likes of Joe Hart, Serge Aurier and Danny Rose were all allowed to leave.

With a number of veteran players off the books, Paratici brought in five summer signings and showed the club’s intent of buying young talented players for the future – with Pierluigi Gollini, Emerson Royal and Bryan Gil all looking like decent purchases in key areas Spurs needed to address.

Pape Sarr – a young box-to-box midfielder scouted by a number of Europe’s top clubs – was also brought in before being sent back on loan to Metz. 

On top of that, Paratici managed to beat Barcelona to the signing of Cristian Romero, with the Argentine defender voted Serie A defender of the year last season.

Paratici and Steve Hitchin are often recorded jumping up and down on the touchline

Paratici cuts an animated and passionate figure at games and is often recorded by fans

This statement of intent won over many Tottenham fans, while the club’s ability to fend off Manchester City’s advances for Harry Kane helped his, and Levy’s, stock rise even further.

The 49-year-old also managed to become a cult hero almost overnight at Spurs, after he was seen constantly glued to his phone on several occasions at pre-season friendlies and out in public, with many praising his insatiable appetite for work.

His personality also spilled out at games too, with fans often recording Paratici during his wild celebrations and animated antics on the touchline.

Reports in September even claimed that Spurs’ players found Paratici’s antics ‘annoying’ when he and his colleagues ‘rose to their feet to shout at the match officials’.

It was even sensationally claimed that Paratici was so angry with Tottenham’s performance against Manchester United that he stormed down the tunnel after 64 minutes and didn’t return to his seat.

Spurs’ season hit a new low when they were comfortably beat by Man United on Saturday

Paratici reportedly stormed out of his seat and did not return, such was his fury at the display

His passion is almost certainly welcomed by football fans, where he has showed how much the game means to him. 

But with results dropping off following Spurs’ perfect start to the season, questions started to be asked of Paratici’s judgement when it came to picking managers.

Nuno guided Spurs to the top of the Premier League by the end of August, earning himself the Manager of the Month award for three consecutive 1-0 wins.

However, four successive defeats by London rivals heaped the pressure on Nuno before he was sacked on Monday after a damning 3-0 home loss at the hands of Manchester United.

Paratici’s hunger and desire to bring Nuno has turned out to be a total flop, which saw the Portuguese boss sacked by Spurs on Monday, leaving the club in disarray and Levy to face the music.

Paratici has returned to Antonio Conte with a fresh approach to become their next manager 

Nuno was only in charge for 10 league games at Spurs, with his reign now the shortest of any Tottenham manager in the Premier League era.

But while there have already been a number of positives and negatives to Paratici’s tenure, the Italian can now help get the club back on track with the appointment of serial winner Antonio Conte.

The pair worked together while at Juventus while Conte was even linked with the Spurs job back in the summer but refused the terms that were on offer.

Now, with Spurs desperate for results, Paratici might be able to get more fans back onside with a swift Conte reunion. 

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