Roberto De Zerbi has been announced as Tottenham's new head coach, replacing Igor Tudor.

The Italian has put pen to paper on a long-term contract, which media reports said will span five years, though his most pressing task is to ensure Spurs remain in the Premier League this campaign.

The north London side are currently 17th in the Premier League table, just one point above the relegation zone with only seven games left to play.

Their position was only compounded by a dismal 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest before the international break, which led to Igor Tudor leaving his position as head coach after just 44 days in charge.

It was the fourth-shortest tenure of any permanent Premier League head coach, and he failed to win any of his five league games in charge (D1 L4), with his only point coming in a 1-1 draw away to Liverpool.

De Zerbi was reportedly a unanimous choice for Spurs' board and ownership, who wanted a long-term replacement as opposed to a short-term one to see them through the rest of the season.

"I am delighted to be joining this fantastic football club, which is one of the biggest and most prestigious in the world," De Zerbi told Spurs' website.

"In all my discussions with the club's leadership, their ambition for the future has been clear – to build a team capable of reaching great achievements, and to do that by playing a style of football that excites and inspires our supporters.

"I am here because I believe in that ambition and have signed a long-term contract to give everything to deliver it.

"Our short-term priority is to climb the Premier League table, which will be the complete focus until the final whistle of the last game of the season. I'm looking forward to getting out on the training pitch and working with these players to achieve that."

Sporting director Johan Lange added: "Roberto was our number one target for the summer, and we are very pleased to be able to bring him in now.

"He is one of the most creative and forward-thinking coaches in world football and brings with him a wealth of experience at the highest level, including in the Premier League."

De Zerbi has been out of management since leaving Marseille in February, following a 5-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.

The 46-year-old took charge of 69 games in all competitions, finishing with a win rate of 56.5%, having won 39 of those matches (D10 L20). In that time, Marseille scored 156 goals, while conceding 91.

De Zerbi also has previous experience in the Premier League with Brighton, though he left the club after just under two seasons in charge with a win rate of 37.1% (won 26 of 70 games in all competitions).

His first game in charge will be against Sunderland on April 12, with Spurs still searching for their first Premier League win of 2026 (D5 L8).

They are currently on their joint-second-longest winless run in league competition in their history (also 13 in November 1912).

Meanwhile, their 30 points from 31 Premier League games this season is their joint-lowest return after 31 games of any league campaign, along with 1914-15, accounting for 3pts/win all-time.