Middlesbrough boss Chris Wilder has said he expects to see Djed Spence return to Boro pre-season training if no deal is agreed between the club and Spurs over his transfer.

Negotiations between the two clubs have been going on for a while now, but it seems that they have reached somewhat of an impasse in recent days.

As per The Northern Echo, Spurs are looking to pay a low fee up front for the wing-back, with an initial fee of £10 million, with add-ons quoted by the outlet.

However, The Northern Echo report also states that Boro not only want a future sell-on clause, but a fee up-front that reflects the ability of the defender at present.

Boro are said to rate Spence at £20 million.

“If nothing happens with Djed, then he’s our player and he’ll be back for pre-season." Wilder said, via The Northern Echo.

“From my point of view, negotiations between Kieran [Scott], Neil [Bausor], Steve [Gibson] and Tottenham stay between Kieran, Neil, Steve and Tottenham.

“If the deal doesn’t get done, we’ll see where we go from there. Have I got an input into it? Yeah, 100 per cent.

"The boy obviously doesn’t want to come back here, which I’ve got absolutely no issue with. He obviously sees his future away from here, and he had a brilliant season last season.

“We’re expecting that deal to happen, but if it doesn’t, then he’s our player."

The Verdict

I wouldn't read too much into this update from Chris Wilder.

He is simply saying what any manager would say in his scenario with transfer negotiations reported to be at an impasse.

That being said, it does sound as though the club will get Spence back into pre-season training in a couple of weeks if no progress is made on the deal.

Wilder though does state that he expects it to happen eventually, the question is, just how long will an agreement take to reach, and how much of a disruption is that going to be on Chris Wilder's pre-season planning if Spence returns?