Nuno Espirito Santo has spoken of the help he received from former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino during a break from management in 2016.
The Portuguese boss is reportedly now one of the main candidates to become Jose Mourinho’s eventual successor in north London.
It has certainly been a tumultuous search for Spurs to find a new manager with deals for Antonio Conte, Paulo Fonseca and Gennaro Gattuso all falling through.
The former head coach of Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers, Nuno has also seen one of his own moves fall through having seemingly been close to taking the reigns at Crystal Palace.
Nevertheless, having now emerged as a major contender for the Tottenham job, it would signal a return to the club for the 47-year-old having spent a period observing former boss Pochettino during a break from the game after his resignation form Spanish giants Valencia.
Speaking ahead of a meeting between Spurs and Wolves at Wembley Stadium back in December 2018, he said: "It was after I worked in Valencia then I joined Porto.
“It was in that moment that I spent one day with Mauricio [Pochettino] and the coaching staff. It was a fantastic day - I really enjoyed.
“That moment, I appreciate it and then we establish a relationship, very nice.”
Meanwhile, with Pochettino having previously been extremely complimentary of his opposite number’s work in the Midlands, Nuno reciprocated as such - hailing Pochettino’s influence in north London.
“Me also, I very enjoy enjoy watching Tottenham play, very thankful for the compliment and he shows the work that we are trying to do, building a team, creating an identity but that doesn’t mean we are going to go with a smile,” he continued.
