So, whose idea was 18 months? Theirs? His? What chairman, if he could pull off a coup like securing Antonio Conte, would have him as good as working his notice the day he walks through the door?
This was, we presume, pretty near to Plan A last summer. If the romantic reunion with Mauricio Pochettino was more hope than expectation, the name that jumped out from Tottenham's interminable shortlist was Conte's.
A winner at Juventus, at Chelsea, with Inter Milan, a manager with Premier League experience, a trophy collector, high maintenance but worth it.