Tottenham have pulled the plug in their pursuit of securing a permanent deal for goalkeeper Pau Lopez from Espanyol after two rejected bids, according to Spanish newspaper Sport.
The report states that the two sides were in talks over extending Lopez’s stay beyond his current loan spell, despite not making a single appearances for Mauricio Pochettino’s first team.
It is believed that there was a permanent option in Lopez’s contract to make the loan permanent for £6.1million, but Spurs decided to test the La Liga outfit’s resolve with two offers a lot lower than the clause.
However, both bids, the second of which amounted to £2million, were rejected by Espanyol and Tottenham then communicated that they had ended their pursuit of the young keeper.
The four-time Spain Under-21 international failed to make an appearance as Michel Vorm and captain Hugo Lloris stood in his way, leaving him to play only seven times in Spurs’ second string.
Despite this, Pochettino was keen to extend the 22-year-old’s stay in north London this summer as the north London outfit look to compete on four fronts next season following their Champions League qualification.
But a permanent move is now unlikely, with IB Times claiming only a major u-turn would be able to resurrect a deal for the goalkeeper.
Lopez moved to Pochettino’s side last summer after working with the former Southampton manager during the Argentinian’s spell in charge of Espanyol.
He has kept 10 clean sheets in 48 league and cup senior appearances, but his future now looks to be with Espanyol unless Spurs increase their offer.