Louis van Gaal
Van Gaal is now the leading contender to take over at Tottenham.

Tottenham Hotspur have made Netherlands manager Louis van Gaal their primary target to replace Andre Villas-Boas as the club's search for a new boss looks set to enter a second week, according to The Mirror.

Frank de Boer, Guus Hiddink, Michael Laudrup and Jurgen Klinsman have all been ruled themselves out of the running to replace Villas-Boas while Fabio Capello says Spurs have yet to make contact with him.

Therefore, the Tottenham board have made Van Gaal the No.1 candidate to take over after being impressed by his credentials as one of Europe's most experienced managers.

Having taken charge of Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, Van Gaal is well versed in the operation of some of the biggest clubs in the world and chairman Daniel Levy is hoping the Dutchman can have an impact at White Hart Lane.

As a winner of 19 major honours Van Gaal is regarded as one of the greatest managers in Europe and it would represent a significant coup should Tottenham land the 62 year old.

Van Gaal will be replaced by Hiddink as Dutch coach after the 2014 World Cup but the early months of his perspective Spurs career would require him to perform a dual role.

Netherlands face two friendlies during the regular club season but questions remain over whether Van Gaal will be able to fulfil both roles, particularly given how broadly spread the current national squad is across Europe.

The former Sparta Rotterdam midfielder has jumped ahead of Capello in the eyes of the Tottenham board, despite the Italian's presence as a guest of technical director Franco Baldini during the loss to Liverpool.

But with Baldini's role being reviewed, after his influence during the summer transfer window following his appointment in June, Capello is not thought to be a consideration though there are also concerns over his ability to balance his position with managing the Russia national team.

On Friday, Swansea boss Laudrup became the latest manager to deny any interest in replacing Villas-Boas after claiming he would never leave a club mid-way through a season, forcing the Tottenham hierarchy to think again.