Antonio Conte "wanted the Manchester United job" and was 'waiting for them to call' before he decided to join Tottenham.

The fiery Italian was installed as the new Spurs boss after Nuno Espirito Santo was sacked at the start of November, ironically following a defeat to United.

Conte was strongly linked with the manager's job at Old Trafford amid reports the Red Devils were considering parting ways with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following their 5-0 defeat by Liverpool.

The Norwegian was able to ride out the storm thanks to the subsequent 3-0 win over Tottenham – a result that ended Nuno's tenure after just 17 games in charge.

Conte would end up replacing the Portuguese in north London, but it's been suggested he "wanted the Manchester United job" and was waiting to be asked to take over.

That is according to respected football journalist Fabrizio Romano, who also added that when the call "never came", Conte decided to "join Spurs instead."

Italian journalist Roberto Gotta offered a similar view. He told Tuttomercatoweb: "I understand that there was a wait until the last moment; Manchester United have a better squad and more decisive players.

Should United have gone all out to get Conte? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

"However, Manchester United have never publicly lacked confidence in Solskjaer. Conte in Manchester should have won immediately, while in Tottenham, he should have prepared the team for next season."

Conte got off to a winning start in his first game as Tottenham manager as his new side eked out a 3-2 win over Vitesse in the Europa Conference League.

That was followed by a 0-0 draw with Everton just before the international break.

Don't miss a thing with our football updates!

Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?

Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!

From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox – don't miss a thing.

How do you sign up?

It only takes a matter of seconds.

Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.

And that's it, job done. You'll receive an email with all of the top news stories every single morning.

You can find out more information on our email newsletter on this link here.

After the win over Vitesse, Conte said: "We need to have a bit of patience because we need to work on many aspects – tactically and physically. I'm not afraid about the work. I know only through the work you can reach important targets."

Solskjaer, meanwhile, limped on as United manager but suffered another devastating blow with a 2-0 home loss to Manchester City.

He remains the favourite to be the next Premier League manager sacked.

Source: Read Full Article