Tottenham are eyeing a former Crystal Palace chief to replace Fabio Paratici as co-sporting director, according to a new report from The Telegraph.
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Make no mistake, Spurs are in a mess.
A genuine, deep-rooted, bordering-on-catastrophic mess — and the club’s search for a new sporting director is just the latest reminder of how badly the wheels have come off in north London.
Let’s start with what’s happening on the pitch.
Under interim boss Igor Tudor, appointed in mid-February to replace the sacked Thomas Frank, Spurs have been absolutely woeful. They got hammered 4-1 by Arsenal in Tudor’s first game in charge, then went to Craven Cottage on Sunday and lost 2-1 to Fulham to make it a record-equalling ten Premier League games without a win.
Harry Wilson and Alex Iwobi had Fulham two up inside 35 minutes before Richarlison, one of three half-time substitutes thrown on by Tudor, headed one back on 65 minutes.
It wasn’t nearly enough. Spurs are still 16th in the table, just four points above the bottom three, and have not won a Premier League game in 2026. Not one. Across the entirety of January and February — nine matches — they drew four and lost five.
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This is a club that won the Europa League less than a year ago. That feels like ancient history now.
The chaos runs far deeper than results. Ange Postecoglou was sacked last summer despite that European glory, handed the most bittersweet of exits.
Frank came in from Brentford full of goodwill and lasted barely eight months before the fans turned on him and the board followed.
And then there’s the matter of Paratici.
The Italian returned to his role as co-sporting director alongside Johan Lange in October after serving a 30-month FIFA ban for financial irregularities at Juventus.
He was back in the building for barely three months before announcing he was off to Fiorentina — citing a desire to return home to Italy.
He left in early February, but not before taking a thinly-veiled swipe at his former employers during his Fiorentina unveiling, pointedly praising the Serie A club’s ownership as “serious.” Given the turmoil at Spurs, it didn’t go unnoticed.
There are suggestions that PCP Capital Partners, led by ex-Newcastle chief Amanda Staveley, hold a genuine interest in buying Tottenham, and for some fans, the possibility of a takeover is very welcoming.
Now, with Lange operating alone and a relegation battle consuming the attention of everyone at the club, Tottenham are stepping up their search for a new co-director.
Tottenham eye former Crystal Palace director Dougie Freedman
According to The Telegraph, one of the names they have been checking out is Dougie Freedman.
The former Palace chief is a significant figure in the game.
He spent eight years as the Eagles’ sporting director, helping oversee a remarkable transformation at Selhurst Park that included the signings of Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Adam Wharton, and the appointment of Oliver Glasner — a decision that led to Palace winning the FA Cup last year and reaching Europe for the first time in their history.
The Telegraph add that Paratici’s replacement would have a ‘significant say’ on who becomes their next manager, amid serious links to Mauricio Pochettino and Roberto De Zerbi.
Freedman departed Palace in 2025, eventually taking a role in Saudi Arabia with Al-Diriyah, but his track record in English football is one of genuine substance.
Chelsea’s Paul Winstanley is also understood to have been looked at as Spurs cast their net wide, but Freedman’s name carries real weight given what he built at Palace on relatively modest means.
The appointment of the right sporting director has rarely felt more important at a Premier League club.
Tottenham have chewed through managers at an alarming rate — six permanent appointments since Mauricio Pochettino left in 2019 — and the instability at boardroom level has done nothing to help.
Without a clear footballing vision and someone with the authority and nous to implement it, the revolving door at the dugout will keep spinning.
Freedman would arrive with a reputation built on smart recruitment, long-term thinking and an ability to connect with managers and players alike.
Whether he’s tempted back from the Middle East to take on what is unquestionably a significant challenge remains to be seen, but one thing is clear — whoever comes in will need to be exceptional.
Right now, Tottenham are sleepwalking towards the Championship — and no amount of prestige or history is going to save them if the next three months go anything like the last three.
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Amanda Staveley’s company are reportedly keen to take the reins.