TalkSport reporter Alex Crook has slammed Tottenham Hotspur's decision not to sack sporting director Fabio Paratici after the Italian's ban from football was extended to a worldwide suspension.
What's going on with Paratici and Spurs?
The sporting director was initially handed a ban from operating in Italian football after his previous involvement with Juventus, which saw the Old Lady receive a 15-point deduction for improper financial conduct.
Meanwhile, at Spurs, Paratici was then placed at the forefront of the club to explain their plans going forward following the departure of Antonio Conte, with fans concerned about the lack of progress over recruiting a manager and the uncertainty of Harry Kane's future.
The very next day, Paratici's ban was extended by FIFA, which means he cannot currently operate in his role at Spurs. With a big summer window ahead which would see Spurs choose Conte's successor, Paratici's ban could heavily impact the club.
Speaking on TalkSport, Crook criticised the club's lack of foresight over Paratici's situation, claiming that he should have been dismissed from his role beforehand.
He said: "They should have seen this coming. It's naive in the extreme not to have done so.
"They're looking for clarification – well, they can look for all the clarification they want; the clarification is the guy you've employed to oversee your transfer policy, to effectively oversee your hunt for the latest manager on Daniel Levy's watch, is not allowed to legally now do either of those things.
"Now, it is subject to appeal. He may get off, I would say it was unlikely. And you look at the Juventus reaction compared to Tottenham's – their entire board resigned when they were found guilty of false accounting.
"The fact that Paratici has been allowed to continue in his job, I think is negligent by Daniel Levy. I expected a statement to at least say that he'd been put on gardening leave; I know they're taking legal advice, I know that he's been sidelined anyway.
"So inevitably, he will leave the football club, but I thought the statement was weak."
What should Spurs do this summer?
Paratici's inability to perform his role means that Spurs should move on from the director quickly, rather than waiting for his appeal which could prove unsuccessful anyway.
The priority for Daniel Levy should be recruiting a new manager, and this has to be done without Paratici's involvement. A new director could be recruited quickly to aid the process, and clarification over the future of Kane is necessary ahead of the summer as this would surely impact their transfer plans for the months ahead.
Any manager – or indeed, director – could be left struggling given the chaos at boardroom level, and Paratici's presence at the club right now is arguably preventing them from moving forward with any of their plans.
