Stellini-Tottenham, the story is already over. Official exemption after 6-1 with Newcastle

Cristian Stellini is no longer the Tottenham manager. The announcement came 24 hours after Newcastle’s devastating 6-1 defeat, conceding 5 goals in the first 21 minutes, which represents Spurs’ worst defeat in the Premier League in 10 years. It was inevitable that it would end like this, with Conte’s former number two kicked out and the bench entrusted to Ryan Mason until the end of the season. With a statement personally signed by the highly criticized president Daniel Levy, who officially closes the Conte era by announcing that in addition to Stellini, the rest of Antonio’s staff are also leaving the club.

THE AD

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It is 18.23 in Italy when the Spurs publish “an update from Daniel” on their social networks. “The performance against Newcastle was frankly unacceptable. It was horrible to see – writes Levy -. There are many reasons why this happened, and while I, the management, the coaches and the players all have to take responsibility for it, I think ultimately the responsibility must fall on me. I have decided that Cristian will leave his role together with all of his staff. Cristian had been placed at the helm in an extremely difficult moment of the season and I want to thank him for the professional attitude with which he and his staff behaved during this difficult situation. I wish him and his entire staff all the best. From now on, Ryan Mason will take over as head coach. Ryan consoles the club and the players well. When the time comes, we will also give updates on his staff. Today I met the players’ committee: the team is determined to ensure the best possible end to the season. We all agree that we have to play in a way that allows us to earn the support of our incredible fans. Go Spurs. Daniel”.

GOODBYE

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Stellini’s adventure as head coach of Tottenham lasted less than a month. He had been promoted at the time of Antonio Conte’s sacking on 26 March, to general surprise given that Stellini is a loyal follower of the former coach and the expectations of almost everyone in the Spurs world were that he would follow him in packing his bags, with the team immediately entrusted to Mason. Stellini, whose only experience as head coach was 4 months at Alessandria in Serie C in 2017, had earned his chance by managing the group well during Conte’s absence for convalescence from gallbladder surgery: he had a relationship with the tighter players than Antonio’s and with the team fourth in the table under ownership he seemed the right man to try and lift Tottenham to fourth place. The pitch said the opposite: the adventure began with a draw at Everton, undergoing a comeback, which was however followed by the home victory against Brighton, which will remain the only official in Stellini’s curriculum in the Premier League. Then the sensational home knockout against Bournemouth and the Newcastle disaster on Sunday. Stellini was a sign of continuity with Conte: not only he was left, but Antonio’s entire staff (with the exception of his brother), proposing the same ideas and the same way of doing things, but without the charisma of the former coach of Juve and Inter. The defeat in Newcastle, in which Spurs tried to change form, was too heavy for Stellini not to pay the consequences personally. With him he also greets the entire staff of Conte, definitively closing an adventure that lasted two years.

DERIVE

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This sacking leaves Tottenham in a very delicate situation. Mason, already promoted to ferryman at the end of the Mourinho era, will lead the team starting from Thursday’s match against Manchester United until the end of the season, trying to limit the damage and save at least qualification in Europe (that in the Champions League, considering the distance that opened with United and Newcastle, now seems out of reach), fundamental for the future of the club. But Tottenham is increasingly a team adrift, both on and off the field, with the farewell of Fabio Paratici who has taken away a fundamental point of reference in corporate management and in the development of strategies. Tottenham are at a standstill both in their search for a new manager, with the mockery that now lifelong fan favorite Mauricio Pochettino looks set to accept the wooing of rivals Chelsea, and in talks over Harry’s contract renewal Kane, expiring in 2024. It is above all for this reason that a season that began with so many expectations risks turning into a disaster destined to have important repercussions for the future.