Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy has made his second managerial change in less than a month after confirming that acting head coach Cristian Stellini has been sacked following the “unnacceptable” defeat to Newcastle United.
Levy broke his silence to confirm Stellini’s departure, along with the rest of Antonio Conte’s old staff who had stayed on, and the fact that Ryan Mason will now become Tottenham’s second interim manager of the season.
It was also striking that Levy accepted responsibility for the deepening crisis at Spurs, which has seen Conte, managing director of football Fabio Paratici and now Stellini all depart inside a month.
In a statement, Levy said: “Sunday’s performance against Newcastle was wholly unacceptable. It was devastating to see. We can look at many reasons why it happened and whilst myself, the board, the coaches and players must all take collective responsibility, ultimately the responsibility is mine.
“Cristian will leave his current role along with his coaching staff. Cristian stepped in at a difficult point in our season and I want to thank him for the professional manner in which he and his coaching staff have conducted themselves during such a challenging time. We wish him and his staff well.
“Ryan Mason will take over head coach duties with immediate effect. Ryan knows the club and the players well. We shall update further on his coaching staff in due course. I met with the player committee today – the squad is determined to pull together to ensure the strongest possible finish to the season. We are all clear we need to deliver performances which earn your amazing support.”
Telegraph Sport understands emergency talks were held on Monday, when it was eventually decided that Stellini should not remain in charge of Spurs ahead of Thursday night’s Premier League game against Manchester United.
Other than the results itself, it is believed the decision was influenced by a huge concern that Stellini did not have the faith of the Spurs players after his decision to revert to a back four against Newcastle backfired spectacularly.
Tottenham only confirmed Conte’s exit at the end of March and it was on the recommendation of former managing director of football Paratici that Stellini was made acting head coach.
But Paratici himself left the club last week, forcing Levy to take charge of the situation and spend most of Monday on calls and in meetings over the best course of action.
Tottenham entertain Manchester United on Thursday night, having seen Newcastle put a huge dent in their top four hopes and with the threat of missing out on European qualification completely hanging over them.
It is understood that Tottenham have made contact with Luis Enrique in the search for a permanent replacement for Conte, but it is thought little progress and the hunt for a new head coach had been made ahead of the weekend defeat to Newcastle.
