Tottenham Transfer News: Latest on Toby Alderweireld Amid Fresh Exit Rumours

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has encouraged star defender Toby Alderweireld to do more to force his way back into the Spurs first team amid continued speculation surrounding his future.

Despite returning to fitness, the centre-back hasn't been able to make himself a regular in the Tottenham side again and was left out of the game against Chelsea last weekend.

When asked about Alderweireld ahead of Saturday's clash with Stoke City in the Premier League, the Spurs boss said he wants to see more from the former Atletico Madrid man, per Alasdair Gold of Football.London.

"For me, like every single manager, it's about performance, training sessions, form during the season and then you pick your starting XI, the best players to try to play," Pochettino said. "He needs to keep pushing and of course the team is in very good form, 13 games unbeaten in the Premier League. For no one it is easy to come back and play again."

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The Tottenham manager also admitted Alderweireld's layoff earlier in the season has been an issue as it was a "tough, tough injury."

However, rumours about an exit don't seem likely to disappear any time soon. According to Matt Barlow of the MailOnline, Alderweireld is set to be left out of the Spurs squad for the trip to the Potters.

As noted by Kristof Terreur of Het Laatste Nieuws, there is some high-profile interest in the 29-year-old defender:

According to Sami Mokbel of the Daily Mail, although Spurs have the option to extend Alderweireld's contract by a year—it's currently set to run out in 2019—doing so would trigger a release clause that'd allow him to leave for £25 million at the end of next season.

In the same report, it's suggested Spurs will consider cashing in as a result, as they value the defender at around twice that amount. 

Even though Alderweireld has established himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League, Goal's Harry Sherlock reckons selling at this point might be wise:

As Pochettino relayed, Spurs have been performing well this season, with Jan Vertonghen and Davinson Sanchez shining as a pair in the centre of defence.

Given he only arrived at Tottenham from Ajax in the summer, the progression made by Sanchez has been encouraging for Spurs fans. Per journalist Philippe Auclair, the Colombian is looking more and more like a bargain for the north London club:

At the moment Alderweireld isn't being missed too much by Spurs, although there will no doubt come a time when Sanchez, who is still just 21, has a wobble in form. It's then when the experience and pedigree of someone like the Belgium international can make such a difference.

Even so, given there's no sign of either party backing down in contract negotiations, if there's big money on the table for Alderweireld this summer from a European club, there'd be a major temptation on Tottenham's part to take it.