Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Mousa Dembele’s negotiations over a new contract with the club have stalled, casting some doubts over his future in North London. According to recent reports, the Belgian midfielder is not yet ready to commit his long-term future to Spurs and talks with the club are currently on hold until after the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which kicks off in Russia later this year.
The contract delay leaves open the possibility that this could be his last season with the North Londoners. It is believed that Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino is eager to keep hold of the Belgian international even if it means that Dembele will enter the final 12 months of his current deal with the club. Tottenham are hoping to offer new terms to the 30-year-old to try and extend his stay beyond the end of the next campaign.
Dembele is contracted at Spurs until the summer of 2019 which has alerted a number of clubs across Europe, particularly from Italy after his sensational display against Juventus in the Champions League earlier this month. The Antwerpen-born player is happy with life in North London and has not ruled out the possibility of extending his stay in the Premier League. However, he has put talks on hold for now until after the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In a recent interview, he was quoted to have said,
“We have not really talked about an extension of my contract.
“At the beginning of the season, I said ‘I had physical problems, I want to see at the end of the season how I feel’. That’s what the club and I decided by mutual agreement.
“If we talk about a new contract in the middle of the season, it will cost energy. Imagine that a player feels not appreciated after a disappointing proposal, it can disrupt his game.
“At this moment, I am very happy at Tottenham. I do not lie when I say that I do not think about a big transfer. I want to play a World Cup and afterwards, we will see.
“Really, I’m not aware of the interest of other clubs. And, besides, I told my agent to wait for the summer to tell me about any offers. For now, I’m only focussing on Tottenham. Maybe this is my last season. Or maybe I’ll sign a new deal. We’ll see.”
Tottenham Hotspur are currently in 4th place in the Premier League standings, just five points above fifth-placed Chelsea with just 8 league matches remaining this term. The North London outfit are hoping to finish in the top 4 so that they can secure Champions League football for the next campaign. They earned a comfortable 4-1 victory at the Vitality Stadium courtesy of a Heung-Min Son brace and a goal each from Dele Alli and Serge Aurier versus Bournemouth in their last league outing. However, Spurs are still a staggering 20 points behind the league leaders Manchester City going into the final stretch of the season.
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Retaining some of their top players like Dembele could go a long way in helping them bridge the gap between themselves and the Manchester clubs in the coming years. The Belgian has featured in 33 matches for Spurs this season in all competitions and at 30, he still has a few years left in him to play at the top level. It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the future of Dembele and whether he ends up extending his stay in North London.
