Paratici proved Spurs ‘revelation’ Conte didn’t want to sign right

Everything changes at Tottenham Hotspur in the meeting room.

Last month it was announced that Daniel Levy was stepping down as executive chairman of the club after a quarter of a century in the role.

Levy certainly divided opinion among Spurs fans, but will, undeniably, forever be one of the most influential figures in the club’s history, overseeing the construction of the new training ground and stadium, catapulting the club into the ‘big six’, something that would have been fanciful a decade ago.

Now Peter Charrington has succeeded him as non-executive chairman while Vinai Venkatesham, formerly of Arsenal, was appointed chief executive in April.

It will be interesting to see what these changes mean for Spurs going forward, as another notable appointment, or should we say reappointment, was made this week.

Fabio Paratici’s return to Tottenham

Earlier this week it was confirmed that Fabio Paratici was returning to Tottenham Hotspur as sporting director.

He previously held this position between June 2021 and April 2023, before serving a 30-month ban from all football activity imposed on him by FIFA, one of 11 Juventus managers thus sanctioned following the plusvalenze scandal, also sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Despite this, BBC Sport’s Sami Mokbel believes his reappointment is a major coup, given his excellent reputation, boasting “one of the most comprehensive contact books in the game”.

Paratici will serve as co-sporting director alongside Johan Lange, saying “I am convinced that by working in partnership with Johan we can build a special future for the club and our supporters.”

The table below documents all players signed when Paratici was first there.

As the table shows, many of Paratici’s Spurs signings made little impact in north London; I’m looking at you Bryan Gil!

Others, however, remain key figures in Thomas Frank’s team to this day, including Richarlison, Cristian Romero, Destiny Udogie, Pape Matar Sarr, Rodrigo Bentancur, Destiny Udogie and many others.

However, one in particular was sadly not wanted by then-manager Antonio Conte, but Paratici can feel truly vindicated by his decision to sign him.

Paratici’s biggest triumph in the transfer market

In July 2022, Djed Spence joined Tottenham Hotspur for a reported fee of £19 million.

The full-back had been an integral part of Nottingham Forest’s promotion-winning team during a very memorable loan spell from Middlesbrough, leading The Athletic’s Daniel Taylor to describe him as the best loan player he had ever seen at the City Ground.

Despite this, upon his arrival, manager Conte instantly labeled him an “investment from the club” and “not my signing”, which Spence later revealed “broke my confidence”.

Thus, after loans at Stade Rennais, Leeds United and Genoa, he made his first start for Spurs at Southampton last December, 881 days after signing for the club.

Well, since then the 25-year-old hasn’t looked back, starting 24 of Spurs’ last 30 Premier League matches, as well as both in the Champions League so far this season.

A hugely versatile asset, given Spence has been deployed in both full-back positions, Ian Wright also describes him, at his best, as a “captivating” presence. In the words of Harry Redknapp, he was a “revelation” in north London.

Meanwhile, current manager Frank claimed Spence is “exceptionally good” in one-on-one defensive situations, adding: “he’s a great guy, he can play both sides… a big credit to Djed. He really deserves it. It’s been tough.”

The Tottenham manager was referring to Spence’s international breakthrough, making his England debut against Serbia at the Stadion Rajko Mitić last month, replacing Reece James for the final 20 minutes or so in Belgrade.

This month, Spence started both of England’s matches against Wales and Latvia, with Three Lions captain Harry Kane giving this moving speech as he presented his teammate with his first cap.

Given Thomas Tuchel’s lack of left-back options, with Myles Lewis-Skelly the other main contender for that spot, it is far from inconceivable that Spence will start at next year’s World Cup.

Back at Tottenham, his exponential improvement over the last 12 months is vindication for Paratici, who has always believed in him, and proves that all it takes is the right environment for a player to flourish, one that clearly does not involve Conte.