Ange Postecoglou's start to life at Tottenham has been fraught with turbulence behind the scenes as new reports suggest Fabio Paratici is still helping out despite no longer being director of football in north London.
The former Celtic boss joined almost three weeks ago and would have hoped to have his rebuild well under way by now but things are moving at a painstaking pace. Far slower than they were in Glasgow’s East End two years ago. They are still yet to announce a new signing and a £16.4million agreement for Empoli keeper Guglielmo Vicario is the only one which appears close.
Dejan Kulusevski's loan from Juventus is expected to be made permanent but Postecoglou knows he needs multiple new faces in to get the ball rolling. The club appear focused for now on replacing Paratici, who cannot officially work for the club due to a 30-month ban from football due to links with irregularities at Juventus.
Spurs are said to be dismantling the structure behind the scenes with performance director Gretar Steinsson the next expected to go. But amid all the turbulence, Football London though say the situation behind the scenes is so chaotic the Italian has stayed on in a consultancy role to try to keep the wheels from falling off completely.
The situation no doubt comes as a frustration for Postecoglou who famously likes to get his business done quick and early. The vast bulk of his signings at Celtic were announced early in the windows with many – such as Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate last January – being formally announced before the window officially opened.
The pace might quicken at Tottenham when Scot Munn takes over footballing operations in early July and he'll have plenty on his in-tray including the resolution of the Harry Kane saga. And Postecoglou will undoubtedly be onto him with a signing wishlist he'll want signed up well in advance of their Premier League opener with Brentford on August 13. They commence pre-season on July 18 – a little over three weeks from now – and the Aussie will want the bulk of his squad in place by then.
