Postecoglou orders Tottenham to complete signing of Barcelona man, with big pitch needed
Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has urged the club to bring in Barcelona expert Jordi Cruyff as their new director of football, according to a report.
Tottenham were previously able to rely on Fabio Paratici as their managing director of football. However, his position came under threat after it emerged that his former club Juventus were being investigated over financial irregularities and false accounting.
Ultimately, Paratici was handed a worldwide ban on football involvement by FIFA. And when he failed to overturn this, he was forced to resign from his position at Tottenham.
The North London side have managed to capture a new Chief Football Officer, landing Australian Scott Munn in April. However, they have yet to sign a new director of football who can report to Munn and aid Postecoglou.
Spurs have been linked with several possible replacements for Paratici, including Tim Steidten, who eventually joined West Ham United, and former Barcelona chief Mateu Alemany, who snubbed a move to Aston Villa. And now Cruyff can be added to that list.
According to Spanish newspaper Sport, Postecoglou has told the Spurs hierarchy that Cruyff would be a great addition to the club.
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The Dutchman spent two years working at Barca, initially as sporting adviser and then as sporting director, before leaving in the summer. As he is now a free agent, it would not be too hard for Spurs to snare him as they would not have to enter negotiations with another club.
Sport claim that after Postecoglou’s demand, Spurs contacted Cruyff to see if he would be open to taking on the role. However, their initial approach has been knocked back by Cruyff, who is of course the son of iconic former Barca and Netherlands star Johan Cruyff.
Tottenham trying to meet Postecoglou demand
Cruyff Jr has told Spurs that he wants to take some time out of the game before deciding on his next move. But if Postecoglou is intent on working alongside the 49-year-old, then Spurs may return with a new approach.
If Spurs are to convince Cruyff to join, then they will need to show that they have an ambitious project to get back into the Premier League’s top four and start challenging in the Champions League once again.
Clearly, Spurs fans will want to know which players their club might be signing in the January transfer window, too. According to recent reports, Spurs will get another chance to try and sign Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo in the winter as the player has burned all his bridges at Craven Cottage.
