By Wayne Veysey

26th May, 2020 | 11:41am

Sources: Tottenham tell Barcelona how far they'll stretch to sign Coutinho

Tottenham are not looking to sign Philippe Coutinho permanently this summer but they would be keen on a loan, Football Insider can reveal.

The north Londoners are among a number of Premier League clubs closely monitoring the Brazilian playmaker’s availability ahead of the next transfer window.

A Spurs source has told Football Insider that the club have asked Barcelona to be kept informed of Coutinho’s situation.

But they have let it be known to the Spanish giants they are exploring only a loan or a loan-to-buy transfer.

Tottenham would also be reluctant to pay the full cost of Coutinho’s salary, which is said to be in excess of £200,000-a-week, more than top earner Harry Kane.

Nevertheless, a summer deal for Coutinho would be far from cheap.

It would involve a multi-million pound loan fee in keeping with his status as a global star proven in the Premier League.

Spurs would be willing to cover a loan fee, but there would need to be some extensive negotiating if Coutinho is willing to move to London.

This comes after Bayern Munich announced last weekend they would not be activating their option to make his 2019-20 loan switch permanent.

Coutinho has not been able to hit the same heights at Barcelona or Bayern at Liverpool, who he quit in January for a deal worth up to £142million.

The attacking midfielder has had mixed returns at Barca – 21 goals and 11 assists from 76 matches – and Bayern, where his 32 games have yielded nine goals and eight assists.

In other Tottenham news, it can be REVEALED that the club may offer £15m-valued ace in part-exchange for 24-year-old.