- Former Liverpool star has spoken about Roberto De Zerbi
- He has revealed he has a Jurgen Klopp trait
- De Zerbi could keep Spurs up
Former Liverpool star Adam Lallana has revealed the Jurgen Klopp trait he sees in Roberto De Zerbi when speaking on the former Brighton and Hove Albion manager’s appointment at Tottenham Hotspur.
Amazingly, Igor Tudor’s only Premier League point picked up as Spurs boss, during his short-lived tenure in charge of the North Londoners, came versus Arne Slot‘s Reds at Anfield.
Indeed, Richarlison’s late leveller, after Dominik Szoboszlai smashed home a sensational free-kick, would hand the relegation-threatened side a share of the points in a 1-1 draw back in mid-March.
Unfortunately, barely a month on, for Tudor, he has now been dismissed as Spurs boss, with Slot kept in charge of the Merseyside giants, despite experiencing his own wobbles in form as well.
Tottenham have officially unveiled the Croat’s successor as former Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi, as the 46-year-old is tasked with keeping his new club afloat.
Former Reds star Adam Lallana believes De Zerbi will go on to be a resounding success at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, when speaking to TalkSPORT, with the now retired 37-year-old even stating that he has a likeness to Anfield great Jurgen Klopp in the dug-out.
Lallana’s glowing words about De Zerbi
After all, the 34-time England international is in a unique position when it comes to talking about both the Italian and Klopp.
While at Brighton, Lallana would line up for De Zerbi 45 times, with his connection to the German spanning 130 games at Liverpool, resulting in a Premier League title being hoisted aloft.
When chatting on TalkSPORT with presenters Ally McCoist and Tony Cascarino, he has tipped the one-time Marseille manager to comfortably secure survival for Spurs.
Lallana said, when quizzed on whether De Zerbi can push Spurs away from the relegation spaces: “Definitely. Not even a doubt in my mind.
“I just think they’re very, very fortunate. I’m actually slightly jealous. I was speaking to a player at Spurs who was picking my brains about him.
“I just know they’re going to be in for a rollercoaster, but a great one.”
Lallana even opened up, later in the interview, about the comparisons he has always made between Klopp and De Zerbi.
Lallana’s wild Klopp comparisons
Speaking on both the managers who shaped a lot of the 37-year-old’s career, Lallana would state that De Zerbi shares a specific trait with Klopp when it comes to their shared passion for the game.
He said: “I always compared him (De Zerbi) with Jurgen, actually.
“Probably just the passion that they both possess for the game.
“I think tactically and game mode-wise, they’re completely different. But in terms of love and passion for football, they’re exactly the same.”
This will be music to the ears of Spurs supporters, who are preparing to take in their third manager of the season, as both Thomas Frank and Tudor didn’t exactly cut impassioned figures from the sidelines.
Whereas, De Zerbi will hopefully be a breath of fresh air as a head coach willing to give his all, to ensure Spurs don’t sink to relegation, with Lallana’s Klopp-like comparisons extremely complimentary.
