Tottenham Hotspur have been handed a welcome boost in pursuit of a new manager with Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis admitting that Luis Enrique ‘prefers the Premier League’ over the Serie A champions.
The sweet smell of champagne still hanging in the air following their first Scudetto title in 33 years; not even the sudden departure of head coach Luciano Spalletti will turn down the brightness on those thousand-watt smiles in the streets of Naples.
But if the Partenopei are to defend their crown in 2023/24, they cannot afford to bungle Spalletti’s succession.
De Laurentiis, the club’s long-serving president, has already missed out on one of his leading targets; former Barcelona, Roma and Spain boss Luis Enrique seemingly awaiting an opportunity in England as Tottenham Hotspur continue to scour the market for a new head coach.
Luis Enrique may choose Tottenham Hotspur over Napoli
“A great coach,” De Laurentiis tells Rai Sport of a man who guided Barcelona to the treble in 2015.
“He did really well at Barcelona, but I think he prefers the Premier League. We must remember that we are dealing with leagues that are more appealing than ours, like the English one. There are better offers there.
“I would tell him that he’d find better food here and there is no gulf (between the clubs) over there!”
Enrique’s ‘Premier League preference’ could be music to the ears of Tottenham supporters sick of the radio silence after yet another long and drawn-out managerial search. Arne Slot went the same way as Vincent Kompany, Julian Nagelsmann and Xabi Alonso last week; the Eredivisie champion signing a new contract at Feyenoord.
Enrique, alongside Celtic’s Ange Postecoglou, remains one of the few names from Spurs’ original wishlist who could still be considered an ‘active concern’.
According to The Independent, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is a big fan of the currently unattached Enrique. The 53-year-old vacated the Spanish hotseat following their underwhelming exit at the hands of Morocco at the Qatar World Cup.
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