Nuno Espirito Santo has held talks over succeeding Jose Mourinho at Tottenham
(Picture: Getty Images)Nuno Espirito Santo has emerged as the leading contender to succeed Jose Mourinho as Tottenham's permanent manager after holding talks with the club.
Spurs ruled out a move for Nuno after he left Wolves at the end of the season but their incoming managing director, Fabio Paratici, admires the Portuguese and has a good relationship with his agent, Jorge Mendes.
Spurs sources insist nothing is finalised and that they are continuing to sound out potential targets, with Rangers manager Steven Gerrard also on their radar.
Brighton's Graham Potter also has admirers at the north London club, although it is unclear if he would be interested in the job.
Nuno is the latest recommendation of Paratici after Spurs ended talks with Paulo Fonseca and Gennaro Gattuso last week, while discussions with Antonio Conte broke down.
Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, has also considered the club's former manager Mauricio Pochettino, who is now at Paris Saint-Germain, as well as Ajax's Erik ten Hag, Hansi Flick, who is due to take the Germany job after Euro 2020, and Julian Nagelsmann, who will succeed Flick at Bayern Munich.
Former Tottenham striker Jurgen Klinsmann has thrown his hat into the ring, while Spurs made Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui "a dizzying offer", according to the Spanish club.
Nuno, 47, who won the Uefa Cup and Champions League under Mourinho at Porto, has previously been considered by Everton and Crystal Palace, and would be attracted by taking one of the top jobs in the country.
He guided Wolves to the Premier League and established them as a top-flight club, although his counter-punching style of play is akin to Mourinho's and at odds with Levy's preference for a coach who will promote "free-flowing, attacking" football.
