Tottenham are planning to rival Chelsea for Luis Enrique by holding talks with the Spaniard over their vacant head coach position.
Spurs are set to interview Enrique, who is out of work after being sacked by Spain following the World Cup and has already held talks with Chelsea.
The former Barcelona boss is understood to be a leading choice of Spurs' managing director Fabio Paratici, although chairman Daniel Levy is currently taking charge of the head coach search after the Italian was placed on leave pending the outcome of an appeal against his ban from global football - due to be heard in Italy on Wednesday.
It could take up to a week for a decision to be reached over Paratici's future, leaving Spurs in limbo in the meantime. It is not clear when the club will seek talks with Enrique but Levy would have to take the lead while Paratici's future remains unresolved.
Spurs could also do battle with their London rivals for Julian Nagelsmann, who was interviewed by Chelsea's co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart last week.
The German, who was sacked by Bayern Munich in March, is understood to want to wait until the summer before taking a new role, although reports in Spain claim Enrique would be open to starting work immediately.
Spurs have put Antonio Conte's former assistant Cristian Stellini in charge until the end of the season, while Frank Lampard has returned to Chelsea as interim boss. Both are already feeling the pressure after shaky starts in their first three games.
Also on Spurs' shortlist is Burnley head coach Vincent Kompany, who led the Clarets to promotion back to the Premier League last week and is forging a reputation as one of the best young managers in the game.
The former Manchester City captain worked with Spurs' head of coaching methodology, Simon Davies, who also spent time at City, while in charge of Anderlecht. From July, Spurs' football operations will be run by another former City Football Group employee in Scott Munn, who is set to assume the newly-created role of chief football officer.
Feyenoord head coach Arne Slot is also on Spurs' shortlist but is currently closing in on the Eredivisie title and preparing for Thursday's Europa League quarter-final decider against Jose Mourinho's Roma.
Paratici was put in charge of succession planning for Conte before FIFA stunned the former Juventus executive and Spurs by extending his 30-month ban from Italian football to the rest of the world on March 30.
His position at the club would be untenable if he does not win Wednesday’s appeal and his permanent departure would impact Spurs' hunt for a new manager.
Tottenham supporters have called for former head coach Mauricio Pochettino during the last two home games but the Argentine is not currently under consideration to return to the club.
