Tottenham’s joint sporting director Fabio Paratici is to leave the club and join Fiorentina following the end of the January transfer window, three months after returning to the club.
The Italian had originally left Spurs in April 2023 after his appeal against a two-and-a-half-year ban was rejected by Italy’s highest sports court, but returned to north London to work alongside existing sporting director Johan Lange in October last year.
Paratici will depart the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium again at the end of January, with chief executive Vinai Venkatesham explaining the Italian executive had expressed his desire to move back to his native country.
Venkatesham said: “We have agreed that Fabio will return to Italy following the conclusion of the January transfer window, in line with his wish to move back home.
“We thank Fabio for his contribution to the club and wish him well for the future. Our management structure is designed to be resilient to personnel changes, and it will be business as usual moving forward.”
Paratici said: “I want to thank Vinai and the board of Tottenham Hotspur for accommodating my desire to return to Italy and join Fiorentina.
“I have loved my time at the club, however this opportunity, together with the need to be based in my homeland, has led me to this decision.
“Spurs is a club that is very close to my heart. It has great people working for it, who are as passionate about the project as I am and want to bring sustained success. I have no doubt that they will achieve that and I will be watching closely from Italy.”
Analysis: No surprise over exit – and no clear replacement
Sky Sports News’ Michael Bridge:
“It’s not really a surprise at all. There have been rumours and talk about him moving back to Italy, this was his second spell as sporting director but I understand this is a personal decision.
“There have been murmurings about potential disagreements but that’s not the case. The other question is whether he gets replaced, and it’s not certain that there will be a replacement.
“If you see the statement it talks about the resilience of the management structure and how it is business as usual going forward.
“This is a very different Tottenham in this window, it’s the first time in 25 years Daniel Levy isn’t signing the cheques and the whole hierarchy are part of that now.
“Paratici is a very popular figure at Spurs, that’s why he was brought back in and he’s been central to a number of signings.
“A lot of them have worked, some others haven’t – Emerson Royal, Manor Solomon, for instance. It’s been up and down but he’ll still be a part of Spurs’ transfer business for this window.
“He’ll play quite a big part, one of the reasons he was so well liked at Spurs is that his contacts book is like the Yellow Pages. He leaves on very good terms.”
Paraciti’s reputation ‘esteemed’ in Italy
Sky Italy’s Manuele Baiocchini:
“It was the news we expected since the middle of December. He will be the new sporting director with full power. I think it’s a challenge to take over Fiorentina with them in the relegation zone.
“I think it is in his mind to build something beautiful for the future. To save the club this season and build up something special for next season.
“He has a very good reputation because he is an esteemed manager. He was the manager at Juventus with Giuseppe Marotta who is now the President of Inter Milan. He won 19 titles, nine consecutively which is the record in Serie A. Everyone thinks Fiorentina made a good choice.”
Paratici leaves Spurs without lasting legacy
Sky Sports’ David Richardson:
Why would Fabio Paratici leave Tottenham less than four months after re-joining for a club sat inside the Serie A relegation zone?
Paratici’s initial time as managing director at Spurs lasted just under two years after he resigned, having lost an appeal in Italy against a 30-month ban as punishment for his role in alleged false accounting at Juventus.
But he returned to the Premier League club in October as a sporting director alongside Johan Lange, who was promoted from his role as technical director, and under chief executive Vinai Venkatesham
Paratici will reportedly have complete control of footballing matters at Fiorentina, whereas his standing at Spurs has diminished in the post-Daniel Levy era compared to his first spell when he oversaw the appointments of Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte.
Nuno was sacked after less than four months and Conte, having taken the club into the Champions League, followed after he publicly criticised the club for having won so few trophies.
Paratici’s work in the transfer market has mostly been a success at Spurs. The likes of Cristian Romero, Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur have been good value additions, while last season’s Europa League triumph was built on the performances of Guglielmo Vicario, Pedro Porro, James Maddison and Micky van de Ven.
Others like Richarlison and Yves Bissouma haven’t hit the same heights.
Paratici’s final act at Spurs will be to guide them through an immensely important January window at a time when the team needs reinforcements, with some fans already tired of Thomas Frank’s approach. Conor Gallagher will bring tenacity and experience to the midfield, but Paratici’s short-lived time at the club leaves him without a lasting legacy.
Gallagher completes £34m move
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
As Tottenham Hotspur move closer to completing a deal for Conor Gallagher, we take a look at the England midfielder’s top five Premier League goals
Tottenham have completed the signing of England midfielder Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid for a fee of £34m.
Elsewhere, no member of Thomas Frank‘s first-team squad is currently allowed to leave the club.
Mathys Tel has interest from Paris FC and Radu Dragusin from Roma – but they are still part of Frank’s plans.
Spurs are also finalising a £13m deal for Santos left-back Souza. The 19-year-old is being brought in to provide cover and competition for Destiny Udogie.
