Jan Vertonghen is approaching the end of his contract at Tottenham (Picture: Getty)

Darren Bent believes his former club Spurs could lose Jan Vertonghen to their north London rivals Arsenal next summer, once the defender’s contract expires.

The 32-year-old was on Arsenal’s radar in 2012 with Arsene Wenger identifying him as an option to play in defensive midfield, however, he opted to join Spurs from Ajax instead due to his preference to play in defence.

Vertonghen has been an integral part of Spurs’ success during Mauricio Pochettino’s time in charge of Spurs, racking up 294 appearances for the club, but he is expected to leave at the end of the season.

Sol Campbell was the last player to move from Spurs to Arsenal back in 2001 (Picture: Getty)

Despite his advancing years, Vertonghen is unlikely to be short of suitors should he end up as a free agent and Bent has tipped him to follow in Sol Campbell’s footsteps by crossing the north London divide.




‘Jan Vertonghen, playing at the centre of the defence, are there too many more that are going to be better than him?’ Bent said.

‘If you’re going to take him on a free, Arsenal could do with him. If he’s on a free don’t be surprised if they’re in the mix for him as well.

‘I think it’s a situation they [Spurs] need to address but at the same time I wouldn’t want to see these players walk away for nothing.

‘It’s a difficult one, they’re down to a free, they’re obviously not going to sign new contracts so what do you do?’

Vertonghen is one of a number of first-team players at Spurs whose long-term future is unclear with Toby Alderweireld and Christian Eriksen also approaching the end of their deals.

The uncertainty over the former Ajax trio and other players in the squad has been cited by Pochettino as a potential factor behind Spurs’ difficult start to the season.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have continued to look vulnerable in defence despite the summer addition of David Luiz from Chelsea, conceding 12 goals in nine Premier League games.