Sources: Tottenham close in on new defender deal after initial offer rejected
Tottenham are closing in on agreeing a new contract with Japhet Tanganga after he snubbed their initial offer, Football Insider understands.
The north Londoners have been in talks with the rising star centre-back going back many months.
A Tottenham source has told Football Insider that progress has been made in discussions after Tanganga, 20, knocked back an offer from the club in November.
But he has subsequently been won over by Jose Mourinho, who has lived up to his promise of giving him first-team opportunities.
There is an expectation that the England Under-20 international will soon pen new and improved terms to replace his current deal, which expires at the end of the season.
Mourinho has claimed the contract includes an option to extend it and he would not be playing Tanganga if that was not the case.
The Portugese handed Tanganga a shock Premier League debut last month, starting him in the 1-0 home loss to Liverpool.
The versatile defender has started in all but one of Tottenham's proceeding five fixtures, two in the Premier League and three in the League Cup.
He is predominantly a centre-back by trade but Mourinho has looked to ease him in mainly in the full-back positions, with two of his starts coming at right-back and three at left-back.
Tanganga has graduated from the Spurs youth ranks after first joining the club aged 11.
Along with central midfielder Oliver Skipp, 19, and centre-forward Parrott, 18, Tanganga is regarded by Spurs as one of three academy products who can be a first-team fixture in the coming years.