‘Andoni Iraola drawn to Tottenham job as Spurs ownership change looms’
Andoni Iraola could be lured away from Bournemouth by the fact that Tottenham are the “bigger club” with a potential change in ownership on the horizon.
The Cherries got back on track in their hunt to secure European football for the first time in their history on Monday night (14 April), after beating Fulham 1-0 at the Vitality Stadium.
It was a result that saw Bournemouth climb to eighth and eleven points above Tottenham in the table, with just six matches remaining of the season.
In spite of this, talkSPORT pundit Jordan has suggested that if Iraola was to be given the choice between the two club’s prior to joining Bournemouth, the 42-year-old would have been more likely to choose Spurs as they are the club with more opportunities.
But given the Spaniard’s relationship with his boss Bill Foley it might take a change at the top in North London to make them more attractive now, but that may not be out of the question.
Tottenham have ‘bigger opportunities’ than Bournemouth
Speaking live on talkSPORT (2pm, April 16), Jordan said: “If I’m sat there and I haven’t joined Bournemouth, and I have Tottenham, Bournemouth on the table, then there’s a distinct possibility that Tottenham have the pull.
“But because I’ve worked for Bournemouth and I have a relationship with the owner, and clearly, you listen to the way the owner speaks, this is the benefit of an 81 year old billionaire, the way he looks at the world, calm, collected, focused, talks about, I’m going to talk to him about his goals, his aspirations, and how we can help him get towards them.”
He then later added that when you look at the situation in its simplest form, that Tottenham are the bigger club: ”The question is, take out the fact he’s worked for Bournemouth, put it in isolation and say which would who would you be drawn to? Still he would probably be drawn to Tottenham Hotspur. It’s a bigger football club with bigger opportunities.
“It may need a change of ownership. They may get a change of ownership in short order.”
Andoni Iraola a top candidate to replace Ange Postecoglou
Football Insider Verdict
It has been thought for some time now that Iraola is the top candidate to replace Ange Postecoglou, in the event the Australian is sacked.
Jordan claimed that the reason Iraola may commit his long-term future to Bournemouth is down to his alliance with Bill Foley and to repay the faith shown in him by handing his first opportunity to manage in the Premier League.
The chance to join Tottenham may represent a similar situation to Ruben Amorim to Manchester United, in the fact that it’s a one-time offer, and with Bournemouth set to lose multiple key players this summer it could be seen as the best opportunity to go.
However, it begs the question whether Iraola would want the move, as he is a young coach building his reputation in the league and the Tottenham job is harder than most think, with names such as Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte having failed under Daniel Levy at Spurs.
Some fans of the club have lost patience with the long-time chairman but whether there is a genuine chance of regime change at the club remains to be seen.
It will no doubt be a situation that becomes clearer and depend on how both Bournemouth and Tottenham end the season.