Tottenham Hotspur are very happy with Antonio Conte, but they also considered Sergio Conceicao – and he has now won a league title with Porto.
Tottenham sacked Nuno Espirito Santo back in November as his ill-fated stint in charge of the club came to an abrupt end.
Tottenham moved quickly to appoint Conte as Nuno’s replacement in an ambitious move.
Conte still has Tottenham in contention for Champions League qualification and you have to feel that he will take Spurs to another level if backed and given time.
But what about the other managers Tottenham considered before appointing Conte?
One of the main names in the frame was Conceicao with The Telegraph and Daily Mail reporting interest from Tottenham in the Portuguese boss.
Tottenham fans weren’t exactly happy with going for Nuno after Jose Mourinho… a third Portuguese boss in a row would have gone down terribly.
Tottenham may rate Conceicao but you can understand why Spurs didn’t pull the trigger on that move in November.
Conte’s availability and willingness to join coupled with the optics of a third Portuguese boss in a row meant Conceicao lost out on the Tottenham job.
Conceicao hasn’t let that affect him though as he has masterminded a quite stunning Porto season.
On Saturday, Porto clinched the Portuguese league title in dramatic fashion, beating rivals Benfica with a last-gasp goal from Zaidu Sanusi.
Porto showed footage of Conceicao celebrating back in the Porto dressing room; cigar on the go and dancing away with his players and staff.
Porto have lost just one league game this season and Conceicao has done wonders for his own stock with a dream campaign.
Conceicao may not have landed the Tottenham job, but you can be sure that Premier League clubs will be well aware of his exploits this season.
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