Spur of the moment: Tottenham sack Nuno after just four months in charge with ex-Chelsea boss Conte tipped as possible replacement

Premier League team Tottenham Hotspur have fired Nuno Espirito Santo as head coach just 10 games into the new season following a 3-0 home defeat to Manchester United.

The Portuguese was booed by Spurs fans on Saturday after taking off Lucas Moura for Steven Bergwijn during their fifth loss of the season, and was later heckled by a gang moved away by stewards while trying to complete his post-match media duties.

On Sunday, crisis talks were then held by chairman Daniel Levy and managing director Fabio Paratici, which have led to Nuno's dismissal just over four months since taking over the reins.

"The Club can today announce that Nuno Espirito Santo and his coaching staff Ian Cathro, Rui Barbosa and Antonio Dias have been relieved of their duties," Spurs wrote in an official statement.

"I know how much Nuno and his coaching staff wanted to succeed and I regret that we have had to take this decision," added Paratici.

"Nuno is a true gentleman and will always be welcome here. We should like to thank him and his coaching staff and wish them well for the future."

"A further coaching update will follow in due course," it was promised.

The Guardian previously claimed that compatriots Sergio Conceicao, currently at Porto, and Paulo Fonseca, who was linked to succeed Jose Mourinho in the summer before Espirito Santo's appointment, were in line to replace him.

Reports in Italy insist that former Chelsea manager Antonio Conte is being touted to step in at the London club, though, and The Athletic describe the 2016-2017 English top flight winner as being in "pole position" for the job.  

Going one further, transfer market guru Fabrizio Romano says that Conte is "ready to accept Tottenham's proposal" with talks underway and understood to be at their "final stages".

Adding that his salary and the length of a long-term contract still need to be discussed, Sky in Italy claim that Conte will touch down in the UK capital this afternoon to get the deal over the line. 

Already working with Paratici at Juventus in the early to mid-2010s, Conte, if he takes the offer, will have work on his hands to resurrect a side that has scored just nine goals across their five wins and five defeats while suffering embarrassing losses to cross-city rivals Chelsea, Arsenal and Crystal Palace.

Leaving the Old Lady – and most recently Inter Milan after scooping them their first Serie A crown in over a decade – over transfer policy, it will be interesting to see if Conte clashes with a notoriously tight-fisted Levy when trying to raid the market.