Source: Daily_Mail
David Pleat set to return to Spurs for a fifth time as a scout
David Pleat is on the verge of returning to Tottenham Hotspur for his fifth spell this time as a scout for young and overseas players.[LNB]Pleat has been manager of Spurs on four separate occasions, three as caretaker, and stood down from his part-time role as a football consultant at Nottingham Forest last week.[LNB]Spurs boss Harry Redknapp does not believe in a continental hierarchy where a director of football is in charge of recruiting players, a role once performed by Frank Arnesen at Chelsea but is nonetheless is understood to support the appointment, which would also provide assistance to the club's chief scout Ian Broomfield.[LNB] Back again: David Pleat looks set to return to Tottenham for the fifth time, working as a scout[LNB]Pleat left Spurs in 2004 when Jacques Santini was appointed as manager, but has acted as a sounding board for chairman Daniel Levy when he sought another opinion on players that the club were considering buying. [LNB]The 66-year-old had meetings with Tottenham's coaching staff this week and has watched some of the club's recent youth-team games. [LNB]The role would include him working alongside Tim Sherwood, the club's technical co-ordinator, who looks after the youth players.[LNB] Controversial role: David Pleat worked as a transfer consultant for Nottingham Forest[LNB]After a season as manager in 1986-87, he returned to White Hart Lane in 1998 as director of football, given the task of restructuring a club who were in danger of falling hopelessly behind local rivals Arsenal, and put in charge of scouting and youth development. [LNB]He was credited with signing players such as Simon Davies and Matthew Etherington in a joint deal from Peterborough in 2000.[LNB]Pleat was briefly appointed caretaker manager when George Graham was dismissed in 2001, and enjoyed a longer spell in the same capacity when Glenn Hoddle was sacked in 2003.[LNB] Support: Spurs boss Harry Redknapp has approved the decision to appoint Pleat as a scout[LNB]He steered the club away from the relegation zone in December of that season, but left the club at the end of the campaign. He was replaced by Arnesen as the sporting director and Santini arrived as manager.[LNB]When Redknapp was appointed in October 2008 the club abandoned the continental managerial structure at that time, but the system could be reintroduced this summer should Redknapp depart to take charge of England.[LNB]Levy has often made clear his preference for a two-tier system, which would also appeal to a new foreign manager.[LNB]Carlo Ancelotti and former Liverpool manager Rafael Ben?tez are the favourites to take over if Redknapp were to leave and replace Fabio Capello as England manager after the European Championships. [LNB] Spurs hope to succeed where Liverpool failed in signing Crewe wonderkid ClaytonStart working or you're out... Redknapp threatens to axe angry Van der VaartI'm off! Pavlyuchenko signals intention to leave Tottenham to find first-team footballAll the latest Tottenham news, features and opinion[LNB]
