Tottenham Hotspur director of football Fabio Paratici is understood to be a keen admirer of Porto boss Sergio Conceicao.
That’s according to Football London, who claim that Conceicao is a manager Paratici absolutely ‘loves’.
The Porto boss is right up there in Paratici’s thinking alongside the former Spain boss Luis Enrique.
Conceicao has been linked with Tottenham before.
The Daily Mail reported after the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo last season that Tottenham like Conceicao and could move for him.
Spurs ended up appointing Antonio Conte instead, but Conceicao has remained on Paratici’s radar.
Conte looks set to leave Tottenham very soon and Conceicao could be a real candidate to take the job.
That would see Tottenham return to a Portuguese manager once again after Jose Mourinho and Nuno.
Who is Tottenham target Sergio Conceicao?
Some fans of a certain age will remember Conceicao as a player.
A former winger, Conceicao was a prominent player with the likes of Lazio, Parma and Inter Milan as well as the Portugal national team.
The 48-year-old actually played under Jose Mourinho at Porto and has followed in his footsteps by taking charge of Porto.
After spells in charge of Olhanense, Academica, Braga, Vitoria Guimaraes and Nantes, Conceicao has worked wonders at Porto.
Conceicao has won 227 of his 315 games at Porto, giving him a win rate of 72%.
Conceicao has won three league titles at Porto, including last season, and has been named the best coach in Portugal on three occasions.
The Portuguese coach has often gone with a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 setup at Porto and they have usually been pretty solid at the back.
Record report that Conceicao is considering leaving Porto amid concerns over the direction of the club, and that could be music to the ears of Paratici.
Conceicao is quite different to Enrique but Paratici seemingly sees great qualities in both.
If Paratici is taking a key role in appointing a new manager, maybe Conceicao will finally end up at Tottenham after all.
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