Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks is desperate to leave the club in January.
Despite being a boyhood fan of Daniel Levy’s Spurs, the English midfielder has seen his career stagnate in recent times.
Having been frozen out of Nuno Espirito Santo’s first-team, as we exclusively reported, Winks is keen to move away in January in an attempt to secure regular playing time.
Although any potential move for the Englishman in January is only likely to be a loan move, the interest in securing his signature is high.
Everton has the longest standing interest – we exclusively reported earlier this year that after losing out on Manchester United’s Donny van de Beek, the Toffees have now turned their attention to Winks.
MORE: (Photo) Ballon d’Or final five leaked as Premier League duo make list
Rafa Benitez’s Blues are not alone in their pursuit though – a close club source has confirmed to us that although Aston Villa and Brighton and Hove Albion have both showed an interest as well, as things currently stand, it is now shaping up to be a direct battle between the Toffees and Dean Smith’s Villa.
Our Spurs source said: “100%, it’ll be either Villa or Everton, but in January it’ll only be on loan.”
Both Everton and Villa view Winks as a tireless, industrious midfielder who has the potential to inject some much-needed energy, especially given the lack of quality in depth among both clubs’ playing squads.
Since forcing his way into Spurs’ senior first-team in 2014, Winks has gone on to feature in 179 matches, in all competitions, directly contributing to nine goals, along the way.