With "The Fireman" Igor Tudor, Tottenham Roll the Dice

LONDON, FRIDAY - Igor Tudor's track record as an interim coach is indeed quite promising for handling the emergency situation at Tottenham Hotspur. However, Tudor lacks experience coaching in England and may face challenges in adjusting formations. By appointing Tudor, Tottenham seems to be taking a gamble.

Tottenham has finally decided on a replacement for head coach Thomas Frank on Friday (13/2/2026 WIB). They are reported to have officially appointed Tudor as the interim coach to lead the team until the end of the season. The club management does not want to rush into finding a permanent coach and is still waiting for the best candidates in the summer.

The name Tudor is not the most special among the list of coaches currently without a job. He is even known as a seasonal coach, never staying long at one club. The 47-year-old man has been dismissed on several occasions in his recent coaching stints, including at Juventus and Lazio. Tudor has been unemployed since October 2025 after parting ways with Juve.

However, when it comes to short-term and emergency situations, the Croatian coach is a master. "Looking back at Tudor's recent career, he's quite happy to take on short-term roles. I think he sees himself as a firefighter," Italian football commentator Patrick Kendrick told Sky Sports.

Tudor took over Juventus in March 2025, after coach Thiago Motta was dismissed. Juventus's performance immediately improved, with only one loss in 11 matches. This positive trend led Juventus to qualify for the Champions League. He received a two-year contract due to this achievement, but was dismissed by the club just four months later.

In Lazio, the role of the "firefighter" is also crucial. Tudor replaced coach Maurizio Sarri in March 2024. Lazio, which was initially in 9th place and on a trend of five losses in six matches, suddenly bounced back. They qualified for the Europa League thanks to only one loss in nine matches. Tudor parted ways with the club at the end of the season.

The instant influence is what Tottenham hopes to gain from Tudor. As is known, "The Lilywhites" are currently in the shadow of relegation. They occupy the 16th position after 26 weeks, just five points away from the relegation zone. Meanwhile, Cristian Romero and his teammates have not won in their last eight league matches.

In an emergency situation, the primary role of the substitute coach is to boost the morale of the players. Tudor has the capability for that. "I see him working well. He gives me the impression of being a person of integrity, someone who goes straight to the heart of the matter (when speaking)," said Luciano Spalletti, Tudor's successor at Juve, last October.

The problem is that Tudor's success in the last two occasions as an interim coach was achieved in the Italian League. The former assistant coach of Andrea Pirlo has no experience in the English League at all. The two leagues are separated by a significant gap in terms of playing style. England relies more on high intensity and physical superiority, while Italy tends to be slower and more tactical.

Moreover, Tudor's preferred formation is 3-4-2-1. Tottenham does not have players suitable for implementing a three-defender system. Even Frank, the coach who enjoys using three defenders during his time at Brentford, rarely employs a similar system with "The Lilywhites." Frank has only used that system four times throughout this season.

Frank last employed three defenders when Tottenham faced Manchester City in early February. At that time, Tottenham was dominated by City and fell behind in the first half. Frank reverted to a four-defender formation after halftime, and they managed to draw 2-2 with City. Since then, the coach has decided to return to a four-defender formation in the last two matches.

According to Sky Sports, Tudor has virtually no other formation options. He's used a back three in 120 of his 124 career appearances. This record isn't favorable for him, as Tottenham are currently experiencing an injury crisis. He needs to be flexible in his formation to cope with the limited number of players in many positions.

A heavy task awaits Tudor in his first match. Tottenham will host their neighboring team and league leaders Arsenal next weekend. Fortunately, the coach has about a week to prepare the team. The Tottenham squad will not play this weekend as they have been eliminated from the FA Cup.

Regardless of Tudor's appointment, the planning of Tottenham's executives appears increasingly unclear with the constant changes in coaching over the past few years. Frank was dismissed just 225 days into his tenure, not even completing a full season. He replaced Ange Postecoglou, who was ousted after leading the team to victory in last season's Europa League.

Postecoglou said the dismissals of himself and Frank in the past eight months were enough to highlight the club's disorientation. "It's very interesting to understand what they really want to build," the manager explained on The Overlap's Stick to Football podcast. (AP/REUTERS)