Roberto De Zerbi has been trusted with a five-year contract by Tottenham, but one detail doing the rounds about his deal is not true.
De Zerbi is one of the highest-paid managers in the Premier League, with Spurs betting the house on the Italian in an effort to get out of relegation trouble.
The Italian did do his primary job, managing to steer the club clear of relegation at a time when they appeared dead and buried.
The Spurs hierarchy has since backed him with big funds in the summer, with De Zerbi leading the club’s summer rebuild, but the money spent has not yet translated into performances this season.
Roberto De Zerbi did not get paid a promotion bonus by Tottenham
The Spurs boss has signed a five-year contract with no relegation break clause, which was a big risk on his part, given Tottenham’s predicament when he walked through the door.
There have been suggestions by some that De Zerbi’s contract contained a big survival bonus clause for keeping Spurs in the Premier League.
However, The Telegraph’s Matt Law has now revealed that the 46-year-old did not receive any bonus for managing to steer clear of relegation.
The Italian has always made it clear that his move to Spurs was not motivated by financial reasons, and has expressed his desire to build a long-term project at N17.
De Zerbi may ironically be saving Spurs some more money this season.
Law points out in his article that several members of the Tottenham squad may have substantial goal bonuses attached to their deal.
So while De Zerbi would be frustrated by his side’s inability to find the back of the net, ironically, that could be saving the Lilywhites a fortune in goal bonuses.
However, one would think that the Tottenham hierarchy would be happy to pay those goal bonuses if the team can find their shooting boots, with lack of European qualification being a lot more costly to the club long-term.