Mousa Dembele has sensationally revealed this could be his last season at Tottenham.
The 30-year-old will only have 12 months remaining on his current deal at the end of the season.
Dembele has established himself as one of the best midfielders in the Premier League in recent seasons but his career has been blighted with on-going injury problems.
The Belgium international insists he is happy at Tottenham and doesn’t want to let any off-field distractions impact his performances on the pitch.
“We have not really talked about an extension of my contract,” Dembele told Belgian paper La Derniere Heure, via The Daily Telegraph.
“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 am 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.”
Dembele is now at the stage in his career where the next contract will likely be the biggest he can command before he will have to start taking pay cuts.
Despite his age and injury problems, Dembele would not be short of suitors if he decides to leave Tottenham.
Mauricio Pochettino has been vocal in his admiration of the dominant midfielder and has previously expressed a sadness that he wasn’t able to work with Dembele earlier in his career.
Of the 82 players that have attempted at least 75 dribbles since the start of last season, Dembele has the best success rate (84%).
