‘In the sights of Tottenham first’ – Spurs said to have beaten Manchester City on timing, but not as convincing

Tottenham can be added to the list of admirers for Sporting Club de Portugal director of football Hugo Viana as he gears up to join Manchester City.

That’s according to Mais Futbol at least, who say Tottenham also made an approach for the Portuguese director in the past.

Reports over the last week stated that Viana is set to move to Manchester City next summer to replace Txiki Begiristain, who has announced he will be leaving the Etihad next year. This was then confirmed by Sporting in a statement on Saturday.

A deluge of reports about Viana appeared before that point, making it clear that he was the man at the top of the list at the Etihad after his impressive work with Sporting, particularly in the transfer window, over the last few years.

Interest from England in Viana is nothing new according to these reports, with Aston Villa also said to have made an approach in the past.

Now Tottenham can be added to that list, with Mais Futbol reporting that when it comes to English clubs he was ‘in the sights of Tottenham first’.

When this was isn’t made clear, but it would be safe to assume it came at some point last year when they were forced to replace Fabio Paratici. That role eventually went to Johan Lange in October 2023.

Either way, it’s further evidence that Viana is a man in demand and Tottenham were once ahead of Manchester City in the race, but seemingly unable to convince him of the move.