Tottenham are prepared to wait until the summer to act on their long-term transfer interest in Manchester United's Jesse Lingard.
Spurs have considered Lingard a target since Jose Mourinho's time in North London and are now in the race to land the England international when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season.
It is thought there will be a number of suitors come the end of the season, with Newcastle United having already been linked this month but Spurs' interest can be tracked back to over a year.
The North Londoners made an approach to United and Lingard over the summer window while Nuno Espirito Santo was in charge.
Tottenham will be keen to add a creative player with Tanguy Ndombele and Dele Alli both on the list of players who could leave the club this month or in the summer.
London rivals West Ham had hoped to lure Lingard back to the London Stadium this month but the 29-year-old would prefer to move as a free agent in the summer and a return to East London is looking increasingly unlikely.
After a run of nine goals in 16 games for West Ham, Lingard opted against a return last summer and instead wanted to force his way in at Old Trafford once more.
However, the attacking midfielder has not started a single Premier League game this season and was given just five minutes from the bench in Monday night's unconvincing FA Cup third-round win over Aston Villa.
