Why Spurs should be wary of proven but argumentative interim Tudor

In a surprising move, former Lazio and Juventus head coach Igor Tudor has been appointed as interim manager at struggling Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur until the end of the season.

Earlier this week, the North London club sacked former Brentford coach Thomas Frank and began their search for a successor.

Instead of appointing a permanent coach right away, the club appointed Tudor for the remainder of the campaign.

However, whilst the coach has a decent track record of getting struggling clubs back on their feet, he does have a history of arguments and controversies that have often led to only brief spells in charge.

‘Nobody Is Indispensable’ – New Spurs coach Tudor has his critics

Tudor began his coaching career with Croatia side Hajduk Split, where he also started his playing career.

After a modest spell in his homeland, Tudor then spent some time with PAOK in Greece. He was in charge for less than a year, with the club publishing a rather scathing assessment of the coach upon his departure.

In their official statement, PAOK confirmed the news: “PAOK FC announces the sacking of Igor Tudor, due to unsuccessful results and disparaging comments about the quality of the team.”

He then spent a year and a half in Turkey, with Karabukspor and Galatasaray, before being sacked but he latter due to a poor run of form.

2018 and 2019 would see the coach have another awkward time, with two spells at Udinese. After being appointed for the last four games of the 2017-18 season, in which he helped Udinese avoid relegation, he chose not to extend his stay. The following March, he returned, but was sacked in November.

When replaced by Luca Gotti, La Gazzetta dello Sport reported at the time that “Gotti has rediscovered Nuytinck, the Dutch defender who admitted at Marassi that he had problems with Tudor. The former coach was also at odds with Pussetto, Barak and Mandragora. Overall, he was not particularly in tune with the dressing room.”

Lazio & Juventus bring out petulant side of Tudor

In March 2024, Tudor was appointed as head coach of Lazio, for the final eleven games of the season.

Once again proof of his role as a proficient interim coach, his presence did once again not sit well with players and staff.

The coach himself came across as entitled in his brief spell in the Italian capital, gloating as he helped Lazio qualify for Europe with six wins in eleven games. After his departure, Lazio president Claudio Lotito hit out at the former coach.

“People say Tudor did really well, taking Lazio into the Europa League,” Lotito told Dotsport via the Corriere dello Sport.

“In reality, since I have been here the club has gone into Europe 15 or 16 times, so he only achieved something I already did. Coaches and players can be replaced, they are all useful, but nobody is indispensable.”

Tudor’s time at Juventus was even more tense, with the coach criticised for his defeatist attitude – especially towards the end of his tenure. Comments that “tactics don’t count for much” drew criticism from the likes of Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero.

Furthermore, several outbursts in press conferences did not impress the Juventus hierarchy.

After an eight game winless run at the end of 2025, Tudor was sacked by Juventus and replaced by Luciano Spalletti.

In all, Tudor is definitely a capable coach – especially when it comes to dragging teams out of relegation battles and difficult situations. He has a proven track record as an interim but questions have to be asked as to how he is the right fit for Tottenham.

There is already mass discontent amongst the set-up at the North London club, who currently sit in 16th in the Premier League, just five points above the relegation zone. Tudor’s survival experience will come in handy in that regard but his personality suggests he will hardly be the one to stop the Titanic from sinking.