NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO is closing in on the Tottenham manager’s job, according to reports in Portugal.
They say the former Wolves boss has ‘agreed a deal in principle’ with Spurs about succeeding Jose Mourinho, who was sacked in April.
The North London club are refusing to comment on this latest development in their long, drawn-out saga to appoint a new gaffer.
But several news outlets in Nuno’s homeland are claiming he is on the brink of taking over the White Hart Lane hot-seat.
And The Athletic claim the Portuguese coach is having face-to-face talks with the club’s new director of football Fabio Paratici today.
Tottenham have been searching for a new manager since April and fans have been frustrated with the long delay.
Club chief Daniel Levy has reportedly held talks with Antonio Conte, Mauricio Pochettino, Hansi Flick, Paulo Fonseca, Gennaro Gattuso and Julen Lopetegui about the vacant position at the club.
Graham Potter, Julian Nagelsmann, Brendan Rodgers and Erik ten Hag have also been linked with the job.
Earlier reports suggested Nuno could join Turkish giants Fenerbahce.
He left Wolves at the end of last season by mutual consent after guiding them to the Championship title in 2017-18 and back-to-back seventh-place finishes in the Premier League.
The West Midlands side also reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League in 2019-20 but finished 13th in the Prem last term.
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Nuno has significant experience on his managerial CV having previously coached Rio Ave and Porto in Portugal and Spanish giants Valencia.
The ex-goalkeeper spent much of his playing career on the bench, helping Mourinho’s Porto win the Champions League in 2004.
Nuno’s recent experience of European football would be a massive advantage to Tottenham as they prepare to compete in the inaugural Europa Conference.
But if he did get the job he would complete a remarkable U-turn by Spurs – where senior sources ruled him out of the running at the start of the process due to his pragmatic style of play and his reluctance to blood young talent.
Nuno was never Tottenham’s first choice with at least nine other managers having been linked previously with the post.
But with some of their stars due to return to pre-season training next week, Spurs know they must make an appointment sooner rather than later.
Academy coach Ryan Mason, who was placed in interim charge for the final seven matches of the season – including the 1-0 defeat by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup Final – is on standby to take temporary charge again in pre-season if a permanent manager is still not appointed by then.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
