Brighton & Hove Albion boss Roberto De Zerbi addresses Tottenham Hotspur links

The Seagulls have gone from strength to strength under the tutelage of the 43-year-old, who replaced Graham Potter as head coach in the middle of September.

De Zerbi has won 11 and drawn five of his 22 matches as Brighton boss across all competitions, and the Italian is keeping the Seagulls supporters dreaming of securing European qualification.

Indeed, Brighton currently sit eighth in the Premier League table, seven points behind fourth-placed Spurs who have played three games more, while the South-coast club are also competing in the FA Cup quarter-finals, and a win over League Two side Grimsby Town would book their place at Wembley.

De Zerbi's impressive impact at Brighton is understood to have alerted the Spurs hierarchy, amid uncertainty over the long-term future of current head coach Antonio Conte.

The 53-year-old has seen his side eliminated from the Champions League last 16 by AC Milan and the FA Cup fifth round by Championship side Sheffield United this month, while Tottenham still have plenty of work to do to secure a top-four spot in the Premier League.

Spurs allegedly have no immediate plans to sack Conte, but speculation over his future is rife with his contract due to expire at the end of the season.

De Zerbi is not the only manager to have been linked with the Tottenham job, as the likes of former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino, former Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel, Brentford's Thomas Frank and Nottingham Forest's Steve Cooper have also been mentioned as potential candidate to replace Conte.

Ahead of Brighton's Premier League clash with Leeds United on Saturday, De Zerbi was questioned about speculation linking him with the Tottenham job, but the Italian has insisted that he is only focused on managing the Seagulls.

"I have a long contract with Brighton and I'm happy to work here," De Zerbi told reporters at a press conference on Friday.

"I enjoy working with these players, I'm delighted with their performance. I can't ask for more, it's a good moment in my life.

"We have a dream. I think we know we can write a new history for the club. This is a nice challenge. It will be difficult, but now we have a complete squad with many young players and we are stronger."

De Zerbi has played down his contribution to Brighton's impressive form since his arrival, and has instead heaped praise on his "top level" players as they continue to challenge for Europe.

"It's not the coach [that is responsible], it's the quality of players," the Italian added. "We have very good players and they are becoming top level and it's not difficult to achieve these results with players of this quality. I don't deserve anything, it's all about the quality of the players.

"I am really pleased for my players and I am happy for their performances and results. But we know very well that to arrive in a European spot, our target, is going to be difficult.

"We have to push, we have to think game-by-game. Tomorrow is the start of a difficult period for us because we play on Saturday, Wednesday, Sunday but we want to play every game with our quality and style."

Brighton will look to extend their unbeaten away run to six matches and move into the Premier League's top six when they travel to Elland Road to face relegation-threatened Leeds on Saturday.