Tottenham Hotspur made their first significant move of the summer as they announced that Fabio Paratici will be the new club Director of Football.
This is an important couple of months for Spurs who are still yet to find a new manager. They saw their attempts to sign Antonio Conte fizzle out, with Paulo Fonseca now perhaps the new front-runner. However, they have still made a crucial step in setting up the team for next season.
Paratici comes to north London after spending 11 successful seasons with Italian giants Juventus. Speaking on the appointment, club Chairman Daniel Levy told the official website:
“I’ve known Fabio for a number of years, and he brings with him a wealth of experience in scouting, youth and football operations. He has an outstanding track record in assembling competitive squads.
“As we all know, Juventus have been a highly successful club and he has been a major part of that. He will be a great addition to the management structure. I am delighted that he will be heading up the football side of the Club as we look ahead to next season.”
And in response, the new Director of Football had the following to say:
“I am thrilled by this fantastic opportunity, and I thank the Club and the Chairman for the trust in me. Tottenham is one of the top clubs in the UK and in Europe with an ambitious long-term plan.
“I will dedicate all myself to this new venture and look forward to working with the management team to write a new and hopefully successful chapter in the Club history.”
There will be several questions asked of the new man in charge and the first one would relate to the future of Harry Kane.
With the England captain wanting to leave, there are a lot of details that need to be sorted by the end of this summer.
How Paratici handles this situation will tell a lot about his suitability to the job. If the Englishman were to be sold, the fee and the replacement coming in will be scrutinised.
By having an efficient transfer window, Spurs can be in a good position to approach next season. Tottenham are at a crossroads right now but if they play their cards right, it will set them up nicely for the next few seasons. Paratici has a chance to show what he can do in a different league, and it will be interesting to see how he gets on.