Erik ten Hag has already made a significant impact since his appointment at Manchester United - but the Dutchman wasn't everybody's first choice for the job.
Prior to his messy exit, Cristiano Ronaldo had his own ideas on who should succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. It was outlined at the time that Luis Enrique was Ronaldo's pick to replace Solskjaer after the Old Trafford hierarchy made the difficult decision to dispense with the Norwegian's services back in November 2021.
The former Barcelona chief didn't get the call back then, with United instead opting to install Ralf Rangnick as an interim boss before swooping for Ten Hag back in the summer. However, Enrique is now in pole position to finally land a big Premier League job in the coming months.
According to a new report from The Times, the Spaniard has emerged as a candidate for the Tottenham job if current boss Antonio Conte does, as expected, leave the club at the end of the season. And the report also outlines that Enrique would be 'open' to holding discussions with the Spurs hierarchy if the opportunity were to arise.
Enrique, 52, has been out of work since the turn of the year after leaving his role with the Spanish national team in the wake of their disappointing World Cup exit at the hands of Morocco in the round of 16.
The highly-rated coach has a pedigree that would appeal to Spurs chief Daniel Levy : he won successive LaLiga titles during his trophy-laden stint with Barcelona and guided the Spanish giants to Champions League glory during their treble-winning season in 2015.
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Enrique is also a 'favoured option' of Tottenham managing director of football Fabio Paratici - although his future at the club beyond the end of the season is far from certain.
While Paratici could be granted a reprieve by Levy, a decision over Conte's future is looking far more clear cut. The Italian's current contract expires in the summer and there appears to be an expectation from all parties that he and the club will part ways rather than exercising the one-year option which was inserted into the 18 month deal he signed last season.
After successfully steering Tottenham to a top four finish last term, Conte has struggled to sustain last year's momentum and his position has come under scrutiny from fans after the club exited both the FA Cup and the Champions League in a matter of days.
If a change does occur in the summer, then it will be Levy - rather than Paratici - who leads the search for a new head coach. Finding a coach with a history of championing attacking football and a commitment to promoting youth will be paramount to the Spurs supremo - Enrique would fit the brief on both counts.
Mauricio Pochettino has been heavily linked with a return to Spurs and remains popular with fans, who sang the name of their former boss following last week's dismal Champions League exit.
However, it remains to be seen if either Pochettino or Levy have the appetite for the Argentine coach to return.
