A number of former Tottenham stars are split on the idea of the club appointing Roberto De Zerbi as their new manager – with Tim Sherwood suggesting the former Brighton boss is not ‘a safe pair of hands.’

Spurs have been searching for their fourth head coach in 295 days after Igor Tudor’s exit and De Zerbi is the top candidate amid a series of talks between the two parties.

The Italian, 46, has drawn objections from some sections of supporters for his role in rebuilding Mason Greenwood‘s reputation at Marseille and is also thought to be keen to wait until the summer, but there appears to be no time to waste.

If appointed, the ex-Marseille manager will have seven games to save his new side from a disastrous relegation to the Championship before looking to kick on in the top flight next season.

A plethora of former Tottenham players, though, aren’t sure on the appointment. Spurs appear to be set to give the 46-year-old a lengthy deal, but he has struggled to hold down a job in recent years.

Sherwood, who managed Spurs between 2013 and 2014 and offered his services again this season, has highlighted how he feels De Zerbi is far from guaranteed to keep Spurs up this season – despite his managerial pedigree.

Former Totteham stars are split on Spurs moving to appoint Roberto De Zerbi as manager 

Tim Sherwood has claimed that the Italian is not ‘s safe pair of hands’ for the Premier League season run-in

‘For anyone going in now, you have to put a question mark on it because you’ve only got seven games left,’ he said on Sky Sports. ‘I like him, I really do. I like his personality. I said many months ago that he would be the man to come into Tottenham.

‘I would’ve picked him over Mauricio Pochettino for the long-term because he plays that style that Tottenham fans want to play. He opens up the pitch – but not now. That style is not needed now, what they need now is a safe pair of hands. This is far from a safe pair of hands.

‘I still like him. I love his personality and the way his teams play. But they can be open and can get hammered in some games – you can’t get hammered between now and the end of the season.’

Danny Murphy echoed the view. Murphy played for Spurs between 2006 and 2007 – the club have not been relegated in the Premier League era, and he is of the view that that is a serious worry under their likely new man.

‘I liked watching his Brighton team a lot and I thought top seven getting them into Europe was a successful season,’ he said on talkSPORT. ‘It’s not necessarily the yardstick to then go manage a so-called bigger club, like (Graham) Potter from Brighton to Chelsea and failing.

‘His first season in Marseille was good, he played good football and qualified for Europe again. We know his sides play good football. He demands it. I was fortunate to watch him in charge of a couple of sessions at Brighton and I have to say it was impressive.

‘He took the lot, the session was intense and they were playing through the lines and they were at it, he was on them, bam bam bam. It really felt like he had control of it and they were working for him.

‘I like the fact he’s strong minded and stands his ground, some people may argue he’s too contentious and causes problems everywhere he goes. If we’re talking about the frailties and leadership of Thomas Frank, he’s certainly the opposite to that, maybe to an extreme.

Danny Murphy has been full of praise for De Zerbi but suggested Sean Dyche would have been a better appointment

‘I think if he goes in there and tries to make them play like his Brighton team, they could go down.’

The likes of Sherwood, Sean Dyche and even injured defender Ben Davies have been touted as potential interim options after the experiment with Igor Tudor failed.

Croatian Tudor left the club on Sunday despite being expected to stay until the end of the season, and, rather than appoint another interim, it appears Spurs are taking the jump of getting someone in to take them forward beyond that.

‘If they go for a short-term manager, an Allardyce type, that’s a short-term fix because the fans don’t want to see them play that way,’ Murphy continued. ‘Although I’m sure they wouldn’t care for the next five or six weeks.

‘If you’re looking more long-term and the future of the club, it makes sense finding a manager who plays decent football, with a bit about them and high energy, getting fans on board. You don’t really have a standout candidate in either category to me.

‘If you want that high energy, good football appointment, there’s nobody out there where you think he’ll guarantee us that and keep us up. You know if you bring in someone to play pragmatically, there’s not much chance of them being in the job long term.

‘I think they like him (De Zerbi) long-term and they’re trusting him to keep them up, by hook or by crook.’

He added: ‘But if you told me over the next seven games, would I rather have Dyche ahead of De Zerbi, I’d say yes.’ 

Jamie O’Hara has been fully on-board with the idea, telling Spurs fans to ‘stop moaning’

Darren Bent also raised the point of the former Brighton boss already has some supporters on his back

Jamie O’Hara, however, is fully on board. Speaking on talkSPORT, he fought the Italian’s case, and urged Spurs fans to give themselves a reality check.

‘I am a bit annoyed and upset at Spurs fans who don’t want him,’ O’Hara said. ‘What planet are we living on? He is a top Premier League manager. He plays fantastic football.

‘He is in the game, he knows the Premier League, he is fresh… we aren’t talking about a Harry Redknapp. I don’t get the argument. We are getting a top quality manager who will come in and be the manager we thought he was going to be when he left Brighton.

‘I don’t get the narrative that we think we are too good for Roberto De Zerbi. It’s crazy.’

He added that Spurs fans should ‘stop moaning’ about the likely appointment. 

Darren Bent, meanwhile, pointed to De Zerbi’s work with Greenwood as a potential concern.

Tottenham fan groups have protested his imminent appointment due to his association with Greenwood, who he worked with at Marseille.

‘It’s an interesting one,’ Bent said on Fozcast. ‘I really like De Zerbi, but people have spoken about how much he defended Greenwood. That’s a problem before we start.

‘I like De Zerbi, I think he’s a good manager, but, when you get a new manager come in, you want that feel-good factor. Even if it’s 10 per cent of the fans, they make a big noise, you have to listen to the noise.’

He has the same idea as Murphy too: ‘I would say I think Sean Dyche is the one they need.’