Glenn Hoddle has confirmed he would welcome the chance of a second spell as manager of Tottenham Hotspur, following the exit of Andre Villas-Boas.
The Portuguese coach was sacked in the wake of the 5-0 home defeat to Liverpool last weekend, which was the London club’s third heavy defeat of the season following a 3-0 loss to West Ham United, also at White Hart Lane, and a 6-0 reverse at Manchester City.
Tim Sherwood has since been promoted to caretaker manager, and after losing his first game to the Hammers in the League Cup quarter-final on Wednesday night, he recorded his first win with an impressive 3-2 triumph at Southampton on Sunday. These three points keep Spurs in contention for a top-four finish in the Premier League, and they currently stand just four points off the final UEFA Champions League qualifying spot.
Sherwood admits he would like the job on a permanent basis, and hopes to hold talks with chairman Daniel Levy shortly. However, there has been a clamour for club legend Hoddle to be given the reins for a second time in his career, and the former England coach, speaking ahead of the win at St Mary’s, admits he would love such an opportunity.
“Do I want the job? Listen, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, I supported them when I was eight years of age,” the 56-year-old said on Sky Sports. “I went there at 12, I left at 28, went back and managed. It’s in my blood, it’s in my bones. If I was offered the job, yes, I would want to go back. It’s whatever is right for the football club and if they felt that they wanted me to go until the end of the season – and they wanted something else long-term, I would be prepared to do that, because I love the club.”
Hoddle cut his managerial teeth with Swindon Town and Chelsea, before landing the national job in 1996. He was sacked in controversial fashion three years later, and the following year, he landed his dream job at Spurs. He was dismissed by Levy in September 2003 after a poor start to that season, and after a stint at Wolverhampton Wanderers came to an end in 2006, he has largely been working as an expert pundit in the media as well as running his Glenn Hoddle Academy, which he founded in 2008.
