Tottenham Hotspur defender Jan Vertonghen has admitted that he would be open to extending his contract beyond 2020.
The Belgium international, 31, is currently contracted until the end of the season but Spurs hold a one-year extension option which he has confirmed they will take up imminently.
Vertonghen has now openly admitted that he feels as though he has four or five years left playing at a high level, and would be ready to commit more long-term than 2020.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, he said: “I’ve got a contract until 2020 — there’s an option and Tottenham will take that option. So I’ve got a year and a half left and then we’ll see. The way I feel now, I’ve got at least four to five good years left in the tank.
“There are no talks [with the club], but that’s something to discuss. At the moment I feel great at Tottenham. It’s a club with unbelievable potential — not just the players but everything around it. Everyone wants to be part of it.”
OPINION
This is a big admission from Vertonghen and one which will come as music to the ears of many Spurs fans. The Belgium international has been a key player for the club ever since his arrival from Ajax in 2013, and he has also become an important leader in the dressing room in recent seasons. The 31-year-old’s form has shown no sign of letting up this season as Vertonghen continues to impress for Tottenham at centre-back, and the defender has now confirmed that the club will take up that one-year option they have on him. Whether they want to extend that deal beyond 2020 is not known, but there is no reason to think that they would not be keen on doing so. Vertonghen is obviously open to such an eventuality, and the way he speaks about the club makes it clear he is excited about the coming years. That is a really good sign, and Spurs fans will now be hoping he does end up staying at the club beyond the one-and-a-half years he is set to be contracted to.