Roberto De Zerbi: Tottenham boss has repeatedly made it clear why he wants Manuel Locatelli

Roberto De Zerbi has repeatedly tried to sign Manuel Locatelli over the course of his managerial career, and if he keeps Tottenham Hotspur up, they may finally be reunited.

Tottenham announced the appointment of De Zerbi on a five-year deal on Tuesday, with the Italian tasked with keeping them in the Premier League.

According to reports in Italy, the former Brighton and Marseille head coach told Tottenham’s owners that he wanted to sign Juventus captain Locatelli this summer.

Naturally, that will only be a possibility if the 46-year-old keeps Tottenham in the English top-flight for next season, with Spurs just one point and one place above the bottom three.

Locatelli has spoken about working under De Zerbi again one day, but whether Tottenham agree to his transfer demands remains to be seen.

Roberto De Zerbi and Manuel Locatelli’s mutual respect

Locatelli began his career at AC Milan, but it was at Sassuolo that he was truly able to showcase his full abilities.

The defensive midfielder played 99 times under De Zerbi before getting an eye-catching move to Juventus in 2021, soon after helping Italy win Euro 2020.

The former Sassuolo boss later expressed his pride at Locatelli’s achievement.

“One of the biggest satisfactions I had in my career was to see [Domenico] Berardi and Locatelli win the Euros,” said De Zerbi.

“To have trained them and see them win the Euros from my sofa means a lot. I see myself as a player, and I try to give them what I didn’t receive; perhaps it was my fault, too. That is a great satisfaction.”

In 2023, Locatelli admitted he was still very close to De Zerbi and that his old manager “changed his life”. Incidentally, the former Palermo boss tried to sign him at Brighton but ended up staying put at Juve.

When asked if De Zerbi wanted him at Amex Stadium, he replied: “We talk often, but my will is to be here for a long time, and Roberto knows that. In the future we will meet again: I hope so, and I know he hopes so too.”

Locatelli was also linked with a move to Marseille when De Zerbi, who needs to make a lightning-fast start at Tottenham (something he didn’t do at Brighton), was in charge, so it makes sense that he wants him at Spurs.

The 28-year-old has two years left on his contract, but it is up in the air whether or not he will head to the Premier League later this year.

Tottenham face tough Premier League run-in

Tottenham haven’t won in the Premier League since 28 December, two managers and more than three months ago.

De Zerbi is under huge pressure to keep Tottenham in the division, else they could lose upwards of £250million.

But their fixture list is not the easiest, with games against Europe-chasing Sunderland, Brighton, and Everton to come.

Champions League hopefuls Chelsea and Aston Villa are also on the horizon, while battles with relegation strugglers Wolves and Leeds United lie ahead.

If they can get a result at Sunderland, though, Tottenham’s tails will be up, and that might be enough to kickstart a revival.

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