A decision on Tudor’s future is expected by Monday. Tudor’s situation has been made more delicate by the death of his father, Mario, and the funeral this week. De Zerbi, as Telegraph Sport has reported, has been the first choice of the club’s ownership. The Italian, who left Marseille last month, has been reluctant to take the job immediately, with the club in a relegation crisis. He would consider doing so in the summer with the club in the Premier League.
Spurs’ pressing issue is that they need someone who would be prepared to take over an injury-wracked squad and avoid relegation. Dyche has a specialism in that regard although he, too, is unlikely to accept a contract for just seven games.
The club have been in talks this week to make some major changes – a new sporting director is expected, with the German Sebastian Kehl one of the candidates. The Chelsea co-sporting director Paul Winstanley is understood to be another.
The chief executive, Vinai Venkatesham, and sporting director, Johan Lange, have been leading the London-based operation with all decisions requiring approval from Florida. That is where the Lewis family’s key liaison, Nick Beucher, is based. He is married to the granddaughter of patriarch Joe Lewis. The Lewis family trust controls the club separately from its Tavistock Group investment vehicle and Beucher has the final say on Spurs.
Dyche was sacked by Nottingham Forest on February 12, one day before Spurs appointed Tudor, who had himself taken over from Ange Postecoglou in October. Previously he had two years at Everton, encompassing two relegation battles in which the club survived on both occasions.
Spurs declined to comment.