Tottenham have landed on a Portugal international as the first player needed to begin their successful new era under a different manager, according to a report.

Antonio Conte appears to have no future at the club following their troublesome pursuit of trophies this season. They have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and now the Champions League.

On Wednesday evening, AC Milan visited the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as Conte’s men looked to turn the tie on its head following a 1-0 defeat in the first leg. However, Tottenham put in another drab performance as the game ended 0-0, sending Milan through to the quarter-finals.

The only way Spurs can make the season appear successful in any way is by making the top four. But that now looks unlikely, with the players low on confidence and Liverpool chasing them.

Conte’s contract runs out this summer and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is looking to replace him. Mauricio Pochettino is getting closer to a Spurs return, with Levy identifying the Argentine as his preferred next head coach.

According to David Ornstein of The Athletic, Pochettino is also being looked at by Real Madrid amid uncertainty over Carlo Ancelotti’s future. But Spurs appear to be the frontrunners given Pochettino’s good relationship with Levy and the fact he already lives in England.

READ MORE: Tottenham forward’s exit ramps up with next club hopeful star signing will end their title drought

Once the former Paris Saint-Germain boss is potentially announced, attention will turn to who his first signing might be. And reports in Portugal claim it will be Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa.

The 23-year-old, who established himself as Portugal’s number one at the World Cup, has been heavily linked with Manchester United. Erik ten Hag believes he could be a great replacement for David de Gea.

Tottenham, Man Utd tipped to battle for Porto man

But according to Sport Witness, who cite Portuguese newspaper Jornal de Noticias, Spurs have big plans of their own for Costa. They want him to arrive in north London and succeed from long-serving keeper Hugo Lloris.

The Frenchman has been guilty of several bad mistakes this term and is currently recovering from a knee problem. As he is 36 years old, Spurs could do with finding a replacement and Costa is their top target.

The report describes him as the ‘ideal solution’ for Spurs. He is still young at 23 years of age but is already emerging into a top-class shot-stopper. This means Spurs will not have to wait long for him to become one of the best keepers in the Premier League, while he could also provide them with plenty of years of service.

Signing Costa would be the perfect way for Spurs to begin their new era. Other teams have capitalised on their defensive weaknesses, which sometimes stem from Lloris, but Costa should help to stop this.

The only trouble is that Porto’s prized asset will not come cheap. His release clause sits at €75million (£66.5m) and Porto want a sum close to this to sell him.

Therefore, Spurs could have to break their transfer record in order to bring Costa to England. That is currently the £63m they spent on Tanguy Ndombele in 2019. While this is obviously big money, Costa seems to be worth it.

Meanwhile, Richarlison has thrown Conte under the bus with an explosive interview following the defeat to Milan.

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