Tottenham news: Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici given ‘full control’ of transfers after statement issued – pundit
Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici have taken full control of transfers at Tottenham after Steve Hitchen’s resignation.
That is the view of 2000 European Golden Shoe winner Kevin Phillips, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the backroom change in north London.
On Wednesday (2 February), Spurs announced Hitchen had left his position as technical performance director with immediate effect.
Hitchen was a scout at Tottenham between 2005 and 2010 before returning to the club in a more senior role in 2017.
According to The Telegraph‘s Matt Law (2 February), the Englishman negotiated deals for Bruno Fernandes, Paulo Dybala, Jack Grealish and James Ward-Prowse during his tenure.
However, the club backed out of completing the transfers due to financial issues.
When asked by Football Insider‘s Dylan Childs what could be read into Hitchen’s departure, Phillips said: “It looks like Paratici and Conte have taken full control.
“Perhaps Steve Hitchen felt like he was getting pushed out and it happens. People have their own ideas, whether you agree with it or not. It is not a great surprise to me.
“I expect Conte and Paratici to have the full say on signings at the club moving forward. That might not be a bad thing for Spurs either.”
Tottenham signed Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski from Juventus in the January transfer window.
Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso, Bryan Gil and Jack Clarke left the club on loan, while Dele Alli joined Everton on a permanent deal.
In other news, a pundit has predicted Tottenham could complete a ‘shock’ move for Cesar Azpilicueta after an update.