Following the inevitable departure of his compatriot Antonio Conte, number two has now become number one as Cristian Stellini is named Tottenham interim manager until the end of the season.
After publicly chastising his players in an astonishing post-match presser following their 2-2 draw with Southampton, Tottenham last night announced the departure of manager Antonio Conte by mutual consent.
Although the club have been heavily linked with recently sacked Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann, Daniel Levy and the rest of the hierarchy have decided to promote Conte’s vastly experienced assistant Cristian Stellini to interim manager, while Ryan Mason will be his assistant.
Stellini had briefly taken up the mantle while Conte recovered from gallbladder surgery last month, and his reported popularity amongst the squad was enough for the club to move on the side of caution until the end of the season.
Official: Antonio Conte and Tottenham part ways by mutual consent — he’s no longer the coach 🚨⚪️ #THFC
Following the departure of Conte, Cristian Stellini will manage Tottenham Hotspur untill the end of the season. Ryan Mason will also be assistant. pic.twitter.com/N8RN38a39n
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 26, 2023
The 48-year-old has been a loyal servant to the now-ex Spurs manager, having been his assistant at both Inter Milan and Juventus. For those here in England, little is known about his credentials, but aside from having a proven track record at Italy’s most successful clubs, it is also worth uncovering the allegations of match-fixing that have cast a shadow over his career.
We need to rewind to 2011 where Stellini had made the transition from a player to Antonio Conte’s backroom staff at Bari.
However, an investigation from the authorities in Italy centred around the 2008/09 season saw Stellini among a host of figures involved in a match-fixing scandal. He was accused of accepting money in order to influence the result during a fixture with Salernitana.
Bari would go on to win the game 3-1, but the aftermath saw Stellini banned from the dugout for two years, although he has long maintained his innocence and refuses to admit any wrongdoing.
The suspension came into effect little over a year after joining up with Conte at Juventus, but the pair would join forces again after Stellini retuned to the dugout as Inter Milan’s assistant in 2019/20, going on to win the Serie A the year after.
The Italian has always followed Conte out of the exit door wherever he has been, so it will be interesting to see how he fares throughout the remainder of the season. During his brief stint as number one earlier in the season, he maintained a 100% record, so Spurs fans will be hoping he can steer them to Champions League qualification once more.
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