Amidst uncertainty over Antonio Conte’s immediate future at Tottenham, Luciano Spaletti’s name has cropped up in a list of potential candidates to take over in North London and Peter Young names three more Italian coaches Fabio Paratici should look at.

According to reports in The Athletic, former Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici has been tasked with drawing up a shortlist of names should Conte decide to walk away from the project at Tottenham. 

Paratici was instrumental in bringing Conte in to replace Nuno Espirito Santo in November 2021 as well as being involved in the signings of Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur and Christian Romero, who have all featured for his former club at various spells. 

If Paratici were to make use of his connections in his homeland and bring another Italian coach over to Tottenham, these are the names he ought to consider: 

Luciano Spaletti (Napoli

It goes without saying that Spalletti will be attracting interest from a host of clubs across Europe given the recent success he has brought to Napoli and fans at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. 

The 64-year-old has fired the Partenopei to the top of the Serie A standings by an almost uncatchable 15-point margin after 25 league matches. Napoli are also hoping to progress to the last eight of the Champions League for the first time in the club’s history. 

The question is would Spalletti really want to leave Naples having helped build one of the most exciting club sides on the continent in favour of a struggling Tottenham side who are in need of a monumental rebuild themselves? 

Probably not, but the finances could be a motivating factor. Spalletti is on an estimated €4m per season in Italy, whilst Conte earns over four times as much in North London. A substantial pay rise could be on the cards. 

Roberto De Zerbi (Brighton) 

The former Sassuolo manager was a relatively unknown quantity to the English audience when he replaced Graham Potter at Brighton at the start of the season. 

Fast forward nine months, Brighton are eighth in the table with games in hand, fighting for their first ever spot in Europe for next season. 

Brighton’s transition to life under De Zerbi following Potter’s hasty exit in September has been utterly seamless. With a decent amount of Premier League experience under his belt already, the 43-year-old could hit the ground running for Spurs if they were able to land his signature. 

Spurs would likely have to fork out a substantial settlement fee to Brighton, who have given De Zerbi a contract until the summer of 2026.

Massimiliano Allegri (Juventus) 

Allegri’s longer-term future in Turin has been cast under doubt since Juve’s -15 point deduction, with certain fans believing it’s time for the club to start moving in a different direction. 

Allegri boasts a wealth of experience in European competitions from his collective seven years at the Allianz Stadium and a big name haul would certainly appease a section of increasingly disgruntled Tottenham supporters. 

Whether Allegri would be up for suddenly moving to London after a playing and coaching career in Italy that spans back to 1984 is another question. 

Thiago Motta (Bologna

The former Inter midfielder is one of the most exciting managerial talents in the italian market at the moment, having transformed Bologna into one of the most tactically interesting sides in Serie A. 

No, they’re not playing 2-7-2 with a goalkeeper in midfield, but they are a totally unrecognisable side from those of recent seasons, and in a positive way as well. 

The Rossoblu are eighth in Serie A, level on points with Juventus, who still believe they are in with a shout of European football next season. If Juve are in contention, then there’s no reason to believe why Bologna aren’t either. 

At 40 years old, Motta certainly looks like he’ll have an interesting future in club management, wherever his next move takes him.

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