Who will Tottenham's next manager be? Five contenders to replace ...

Antonio Conte has left Tottenham and that means Daniel Levy must now bring in a replacement.

There is pressure on the Spurs chairman to get this one right after a string of appointments that have ended sourly.

Jose Mourinho and Conte's tenures at the club took similar paths and came to the same conclusion, so will the club take a different approach with their next manager?

We've taken a look at the main contenders for the job and assessed their credentials.

Bayern Munich’s decision to sack one of Europe’s most talented young coaches came as something of a surprise, although the club’s hierarchy clearly had their sights set on Thomas Tuchel.

But whoever appoints Nagelsmann, now a free agent, will benefit hugely from this. The 35-year-old already has a reputation as both a winner and a tactical innovator, a precocious manager with the potential to become a great.

At the time of writing Naglesmann is also the bookies’ favourite to replace Conte at Spurs. It would, on the surface, appear to be the most obvious move for Levy. After the pragmatism and expectation that came with Jose Mourinho and Conte, the youth and comparative idealism of Nagelsmann would make for a refreshing change.

It would be an appointment that moves away from the recent trend of short-termism at Spurs and sets the club up for future success, providing the new man is given more time than at Bayern.

He left Bavaria having won a Bundesliga title and guided the German champions to the quarter-finals of this year’s Champions League, so there is no doubting Nagelsmann’s credentials at the highest level.

Never go back is a mantra for many people but Levy might think differently. 

The return of Pochettino would be tinged with sentimentality and perhaps not the most logical appointment. But it would certainly lift the fanbase and be welcomed by a group of players still enamoured with the Argentine.

This, after all, is the coach who guided Spurs to a Champions League final, who took a team from Europa League hopefuls to Premier League title contenders. His work at Tottenham contributed significantly to the club’s progress in recent years.

It could be that both he and Spurs have benefitted from a period of separation and everything will be better upon his return. The club’s higher-ups might be wary of going back, though, after dismissing him following a poor start to the 2019/20 season.

Since then, Pochettino has had a turbulent spell as PSG manager and plenty of time away from football, so this is an option that will need some real consideration from a Tottenham perspective.

If Spurs fans have grown tired of watching the functional but often unaesthetic football of Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo and Conte, they will be excited by the possibility of appointing Enrique.

The former Barcelona boss was sacked by Spain after their surprise World Cup exit at the hands of Morocco in Qatar.

But his reputation remains high and his coaching philosophy makes him an attractive proposition for many top European clubs.

The 52-year-old was hugely successful at Barcelona, winning the treble in 2014/15 and leaving the club with nine trophies to his name.

His time with Spain proved more challenging, but there was no question that his side were pleasing on the eye. That could well be a big selling point for Levy as he looks to assuage Tottenham fans who have grown bored by the football on show.

A less glamorous name than the alternatives, certainly, but Mason looks set for a strong career and appears to be an accomplished and considered coach.

The 31-year-old had a spell as caretaker manager at the end of the 2020/21 season, winning four and losing three of his seven games in charge.

And he will have learned a lot having now worked under the guidance of Mourinho and Conte. Being number two to Stellini between now and the end of the season will only add to Mason’s credentials, too.

The argument against the former Spurs midfielder is, of course, his lack of experience. But the success of Mikel Arteta at north London rivals Arsenal might tempt Levy to take a similar approach.

Mason knows the players and the club better than any of the other candidates and the transition would be smooth. Whether he ticks all the boxes required remains to be seen.

An outsider but a manager with a rapidly growing reputation, De Zerbi is becoming one of the most coveted coaches in the Premier League.

The Italian has only been at Brighton for a few months but already he has earned admirers for his attractive, attacking style of play and the consistency of his team’s performances.

The Seagulls have not only maintained their impressive results after the exit of Graham Potter to Chelsea but they’ve built on the work done by the Englishman. De Zerbi’s side are more productive offensively and as things stand remain in contention for a top six finish.

That would be some achievement given the financial disparity between the division’s biggest clubs and Brighton.

De Zerbi has managed to get the very best out of a talented group of players, recruited smartly and with a limited budget. What he could do at a club with the resources of Tottenham is an exciting prospect.