Tottenham have sacked acting head coach Cristian Stellini and placed Ryan Mason in charge following the club’s 6-1 thrashing at top-four rivals Newcastle.
The Italian stepped up from his role as assistant head coach to replace Antonio Conte until the end of the season when Conte left the club at the end of March, but has not seen an improvement in results, with Spurs six points adrift of the Champions League places.
Mason, 31, will take charge for a second time having also acted as interim head coach in 2021 following the sacking of Jose Mourinho.
A statement from chairman Daniel Levy read: “Sunday’s performance against Newcastle was wholly unacceptable. It was devastating to see. We can look at many reasons why it happened and whilst myself, the board, the coaches and players must all take collective responsibility, ultimately the responsibility is mine.
“Cristian will leave his current role along with his coaching staff. Cristian stepped in at a difficult point in our season and I want to thank him for the professional manner in which he and his coaching staff have conducted themselves during such a challenging time. We wish him and his staff well.
“Ryan Mason will take over head coach duties with immediate effect. Ryan knows the club and the players well. We shall update further on his coaching staff in due course.
“I met with the player committee today – the squad is determined to pull together to ensure the strongest possible finish to the season. We are all clear we need to deliver performances which earn your amazing support.”
Tottenham are fifth, six points behind third-placed Newcastle and fourth-placed Manchester United, who have games in hand.
The news comes after Stellini switched Spurs to a back four for their trip to top-four rivals Newcastle on Sunday – and saw his side concede five goals in the opening 21 minutes.
After the game he took responsibility for the result, describing the first 25 minutes as the worst he had ever seen in football.
