Tottenham chief 'placed on gardening leave' as summer shake-up continues after Ange Postecoglou's sacking and Thomas Frank's appointment

Tottenham's chief football officer has reportedly been placed on gardening leave amid a summer of upheaval at the club.

The Europa League champions sacked Ange Postecoglou earlier this month despite the Australian leading Spurs to their first trophy in 17 years in Bilbao.

Postecoglou had been dismissed exactly two years to the day he was hired, with Tottenham's board highlighting their dismal domestic campaign as key to their decision.

Thomas Frank was named as Postecoglou's successor as head coach, with chairman Daniel Levy and chief executive Vinai Venkatesham speaking publicly on the decision to appoint the former Brentford boss.

Venkatesham has officially begun his role this summer with the former Arsenal executive joining a Tottenham board which had lost Daniel Levy's 'right-hand woman' Donna-Maria Cullen, who left the club after 20 years.

The summer of change has continued with Football London reporting Tottenham's chief football officer Scott Munn has been placed on gardening leave ahead of his departure.

Munn arrived from the City Football Group's Chinese branch in 2023, joining the same year as Postecoglou. 

He was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of City Football Group in China back in 2019 and had previously worked for nine years with A-League side Melbourne City FC as their Chief Executive Officer.

The Australian also had extensive experience working outside of football, starting his career within the Sydney Organising Committee for the 2000 Olympic Games, before moving to work with the National Rugby League and the Australian Football League.

The 51-year-old has been a background figure, charged with shaking up and streamlining various departments.

He led the review that ended with the exit of long-serving head of medicine Geoff Scott last year, but Tottenham's injuries only worsened last season. 

Postecoglou had been forced to make do without many of his first team regulars after an unprecedented injury crisis which has particularly hit his defensive line.

Munn's name had been notably absent when Frank spoke about Tottenham's structure when spoke for the first time as the new head coach last week, with the Dane referencing Levy, Venkatesham and technical director Johan Lange.

'I had very good conversations and meetings with (Daniel Levy, Vinai Venkatesham, and Johan Lange) where we discussed everything in depth - details about the Club structure, processes - and of course I came with my views on things, how I saw it, my ideas, and the way I want to do things and how I try to build a team and a club,' Frank said.

'Of course, it’s not just me. I think it’s very important to say: yes, the Head Coach is an important person, but if I don’t have good people around me, it’s impossible. You can’t do anything alone, in my opinion.

'If you want to do something quick, you can go alone. If you want to do something big or achieve something big, you go together. So, it’s definitely about doing things together - me, the staff, the players.

'I think alignment is key - from top to bottom. Of course it starts from Daniel, Vinai, Johan, and me - and the more the four of us can be aligned, just like a unit, an unbreakable unit, the stronger we’ll be.'

Former managing director of football Fabio Paratici has also been tipped to return to Tottenham this summer, with his worldwide football ban due to expire on July 20.

Paratici had left the club in 2023 after an appeal against a two-and-a-half-year FIFA ban for alleged financial irregularities dating back to his spell at Juventus was rejected.

The Italian has helped Tottenham on a consultancy basis, after parts of his ban had been lifted by FIFA.

According to the Telegraph, Paratici’s consultancy contract will run until the end of the summer transfer window.