Mauricio Pochettino could make Crystal Palace star Wilfred Zaha his first transfer back at Tottenham if he seals a return to north London in the summer. Antonio Conte's departure from the club was confirmed late into Sunday evening after 16 months at the Spurs helm.
Results had been mixed in the Italian's second season in charge, but it was likely his post-Southampton outburst that led to Daniel Levy making the decision to relieve him of his duties. Spurs let a two-goal lead slip with 15 minutes to spare. Discussing the late collapse, Conte said: "They are used to it here, They don't play for something important yeah? They don't want to play under pressure, they don't want to play under stress.
READ MORE: Antonio Conte's last words as Tottenham head coach shows why Daniel Levy had no other option
"It is easy in this way. Tottenham's story is this. 20 years there is the owner and they never won something but why. The fault is only for the club, or for every manager that stay here? I have seen the managers that Tottenham had on the bench. You risk to disrupt the figure of the manager and to protect the other situation in every moment.
"Until now I try to hide the situation but now no because I don't want to see what I have seen today because this is unacceptable and also unacceptable for the fans. They follow us, pay for the ticket and to see the team another time to have this type of performance is unacceptable. We have to think a lot about this."
With Conte now gone from north London, talk shifts to who will likely replace him with Pochettino as one of the possible names. The 51-year-old was sacked by the club in 2019, but has regularly been linked with a sensational return on every occasion a Spurs head coach has been let go since his own exit three-and-a-half-years ago.
An early summer appointment would likely give the incoming manager plenty of time to make any transfer decisions. The Argentine was a keen admirer of Zaha, whose contract expires at Palace in the summer, during his first spell in charge of Tottenham and the departure of a different Premier League manager could mean the Ivorian's future is away from Selhurst Park.
“I know Wilf was very close to Patrick [Vieira]," Spurs' former head of elite identification and player development David Webb told The Sun. Before working with Pochettino in north London, Webb identified the talents of Zaha when he was just 10 years old.
“If he was thinking of going then it’s probably pushed him a little bit further towards that. He’s really settled from what I know, with all his family around the Croydon, Beckenham, Bromley area so if he was trying something new, ideally it would be another London club.
“I know he’s had good offers from abroad like Saudi Arabia but I think his ideal one would be to test himself in the Premier League at a higher club. Poch was a big fan of his. I still think he’s attractive for a couple of years because he’s still got great attributes for the Premier League.”
Zaha was on the brink of a move to Arsenal in 2019, but despite former manager Unai Emery wanting him, the club opted to sign Nicolas Pepe instead. The 30-year-old has since opened up on the transfer saga that ultimately saw him remain at Palace. "I had a conversation with the manager, actually," Zaha told Jamie Carragher on The Greatest Games podcast.
"The conversation was rather straightforward because I’ve played against him when he’s managed Arsenal, he’s seen what I can do, he’s seen my work rate, what I can add to the team. Obviously, it was up to the club who they chose, and obviously they chose Pepe over me.
"I just think if there’s a player who plays in the Premier League who you see week in, week out, and you know what he does… I feel like it’s a no-brainer."
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