Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly identified Oliver Glasner as a potential candidate to replace Antonio Conte in the dugout at the north London club.
With the Italian apparently facing the exit door following a questionable run of domestic and European results, as well as a recent outburst in his latest press conference criticising the players and ownership, it has been revealed that the club have already identified a possible successor.
According to a recent report from Bild (via Sport Witness), Spurs are interested in hiring Glasner and have even initiated contact with the Eintracht Frankfurt head coach and his camp.
The report also adds that former Frankfurt boss Friedhelm Funkel believes the 48-year-old would consider making a move abroad if an offer were to come his way.
After winning 41 of the 87 games he had in charge with VfL Wolfsburg, the Austrian was appointed as Frankfurt’s boss back in July 2021.
Since then, Glasner has overlooked 85 games with the German club across all competitions, winning 35, drawing 25 and losing 25 along the way.
Despite that rather mixed bag of results, the manager saw his side win the Europa League last season, showing that he knows what it takes to win at a high level.
Should Spurs hire Oliver Glasner?
Yes
No
This season has seen Frankfurt win 11 of their 25 Bundesliga games, drawing seven and losing seven, currently placing them sixth in the league table with 40 points on the board, scoring 46 goals and conceding 36 in the process.
Under Glasner, WhoScored lists Frankfurt’s ability to create chances through individual skill as well as finishing scoring chances as their main strengths.
Meanwhile, some of their weaknesses include defending set pieces, winning aerial duels and defending against skilful players.
Bearing in mind how only six clubs have conceded more goals in the Premier League this season than Spurs (40), perhaps if they do find themselves looking to hire a new manager in the near future, they should be looking for one with more defensive nous about him than Glasner.
However, we would wager that fans of the club would trade defensive solidity for a major trophy, and given Glasner’s recent success in Europe, perhaps Spurs are a club of the right profile that would suit the Austrian’s skills.
Especially when you consider Glasner came up against Spurs in the Champions League off the back of Frankfurt’s Europa League triumph (and mid-table finish in the Bundesliga), it could be argued that history suggests he can lead Spurs to similar heights from a greater head start in terms of the quality that would be at his disposal.