Tottenham Hotspur are progressing in discussions regarding a move to recruit a key behind the scenes figure who is already operating in the Premier League, according to a fresh report.
Tottenham's season so far
Ange Postecoglou’s side have made a fantastic start to the new top-flight campaign having won eight and drawn two of their opening ten fixtures meaning that they currently find themselves at the top of the table having picked up an impressive 26 points from a possible 30.
Manchester United (2-0)
Brentford (2-2)
Bournemouth (2-0)
Arsenal (2-2)
Burnley (5-2)
Sheffield United (2-1)
Liverpool (2-1)
Luton Town (1-0)
Fulham (2-0)
Crystal Palace (2-1)
The Lilywhites and their North London rivals Arsenal are the only two teams in the division to remain unbeaten, so whilst the club’s performances on the pitch have exceeded all expectations, Daniel Levy is still keen to add new members to his hierarchy. The N17 outfit's chairman appears to have set his sights on Aston Villa’s head of recruitment Rob MacKenzie who has been based in the Midlands since 2020, but prior to that, he has gained a vast amount of experience at several other clubs.
Since the start of his career, the 38-year-old has held senior roles at Leicester City, Derby County, OH Leuven and Spurs themselves where his previous position involved recommending scouting targets to the club’s transfer team (Transfermarkt – MacKenzie profile), and he could now be set to return for a second spell.
Spurs enter negotiations with Rob MacKenzie
According to Football Insider, Tottenham are in discussions to appoint MacKenzie, who formerly worked with Johan Lange.
"Tottenham are in advanced talks to lure Aston Villa recruitment chief Rob MacKenzie, sources have told Football Insider. The Premier League leaders are working on a deal to hire MacKenzie for a second time after he spent 18 months at the club from 2015 to 2016.
"Tottenham have set their sights on the Villa head of recruitment after announcing on 9th October that Johan Lange was joining from the Midlands giants as their technical director. Tottenham are keen to reunite Lange with MacKenzie, who has been head of recruitment at Villa since August 2020."
Alongside working as head of recruitment, MacKenzie has also operated as a video analyst at Aston Villa, so he could be a shrewd recruit for Tottenham. Unai Emery’s key figure may aim to help improve the club’s transfer strategy and ensure that their next batch of new arrivals in January are able to make a positive impression in the capital, and there’s a chance he could look to his potentially soon to be old stomping ground to make that happen.
Spurs have previously been linked with moves for the likes of Ollie Watkins and Douglas Luiz, so should MacKenzie indeed make the switch to North London, who knows, he could try and convince the pair to follow in his footsteps should they want a new challenge in 2024.
