Tottenham Hotspur's caretaker boss Ryan Mason could reportedly have a chance of securing the position on a permanent basis, according to recent reports.
What's the latest on Tottenham's manager search?
As per Sky Sports, the Lilywhites are seemingly not set to appoint out-of-work coach Julian Nagelsmann despite previous speculation linking the German with the vacancy, with the report suggesting that no meeting is set to take place with the ex-Bayern Munich man.
The piece thus goes on to name potential alternatives to the 35-year-old, with the aforementioned Mason seemingly among those who will be considered for the role, having taken charge in recent weeks following the dismissal of interim manager, Cristian Stellini.
The Englishman – who also replaced Jose Mourinho in the dugout on a short-term basis back in 2021 – has previously suggested that he would be "ready" to fill the void of Antonio Conte as the club's new permanent boss.
Should Spurs appoint Ryan Mason permanently?
There may well be Spurs supporters who would be rather underwhelmed at the prospect of handing the reins to Mason for the foreseeable future, particularly following the recent links to a "genius" such as Nagelsmann, as previously hailed by The Athletic's Raphael Honigstein.
While the 31-year-old has seemingly made a positive impression at N17 in recent weeks – having "instilled belief" in the squad, according to Ben Davies – it would appear to be a real gamble for chairman Daniel Levy to put faith in such a youthful figure, with ex-Spurs defender Alan Hutton previously expressing his concerns over that move, suggesting it would be "very difficult" for the up and coming coach to take on what appears to be a "huge job".
The one-time Hull City midfielder – who is said to favour a 4-2-3-1 formation – has also hardly set the world alight when he has been in charge of the north Londoners during his two caretaker spells thus far with just five wins from 11 games across all fronts.
As former Tottenham man Jamie O'Hara recently stated, giving the position to Mason on a permanent basis seemingly has "signs of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer written all over it", with the latter man having himself taken on the top job at Manchester United following an interim spell in charge during the 2018/19 campaign.
A club legend at Old Trafford, the Norwegian was brought in to lift the mood following Jose Mourinho's departure in December 2018, subsequently going on to win 14 of his first 19 games in charge, including seeing off Paris Saint-Germain in a remarkable Champions League, last-16 comeback.
That fine start to life back in England saw the treble winner given a full-time contract somewhat prematurely in March 2019, although just over two years later the former Cardiff City and Molde boss found himself out of a job, having failed to win any silverware during that time.
Although Solskjaer did lead United to a respectable second-place finish in his final full season in charge, the manner in which his spell ended at the club – as he was sacked in November 2021 – rather soured the image of his time at the helm.
That "short-term thinking" from the Red Devils ultimately proved costly – as prophecised by talkSPORT's Simon Jordan – with Levy and co likely to be keen to avoid making the same mistake with an inexperienced figure such as Mason.