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Report: Mason was Tottenham backup had Conte rejected them again

Tottenham Hotspur would have likely still parted company with Nuno Espírito Santo had Antonio Conte not been ready to take over last year, that Ryan Mason would have taken the job on an interim basis.

Tottenham sacked Nuno at the start of November off the back of a 3-0 defeat to Manchester United. It was a remarkable fall for Spurs, who topped the Premier League at the first international break.

Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Premier League
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Immediately, it appeared that Conte was waiting in the wings. that the Italian was a contender in their piece on Nuno’s departure.

And ultimately, Tottenham got their man and Conte arrived. It was a huge statement of intent to appoint him. And there have been glimpses of where he could take the club.

Tottenham Hotspur v Everton - Premier League
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Tottenham are very much in the running for the top four. In fact, their last four Premier League games sum up Spurs under Conte quite nicely.

They have beaten Manchester City for a second time. And they thrashed the woeful Leeds and Everton. But they were also beaten by Burnley in amongst that run.

It does appear that Tottenham do have a real opportunity with Conte at the helm.

But that does not mean that Spurs would not have made a change had the former Inter Milan boss been ready to turn them down for a second time.

that Mason would have returned in a caretaker role had Conte said no when Tottenham sacked Nuno.

Mason will surely benefit more from Tottenham appointing Conte instead of him

Mason did well towards the end of last season. There were some positive signs. Michael Dawson described him as ‘‘.

And he deserves a lot of credit for the way Tottenham handled the Carabao Cup final in only his second game in charge.

You would imagine that he would have been ready to step up again. And the fans would have given him their backing, particularly given how Nuno’s tenure ended.

Having said that, Conte coming in will surely benefit Mason more in the years to come. He is now his first-team coach. And he is now getting to work closely with a world-class manager.

Mason’s time at Tottenham may well come again. And he will likely be better prepared for it off the back of working with Conte.