Fulham have angrily called off Moussa Dembélé’s proposed £6m move to Tottenham Hotspur after a row over the centre-forward’s loan-back arrangement.

The west London club have insisted all along that Dembélé cannot and will not be allowed to play elsewhere for the remainder of the season given their precarious position just above the Championship relegation places and the imperative to keep hold of one of their few goal threats.

Their position has been thrown into sharper focus by the club being under a Football League transfer embargo.

Fulham negotiated a deal with Tottenham that would allow the 19-year-old to sign off on the deal now but return to Craven Cottage until the end of May. Dembélé’s Fulham contract expires at the end of the season and even though he would then be permitted to move as a free agent, they would still receive a fee for him at tribunal if he were to join an English club.

Dembélé underwent a medical at Tottenham on Saturday and the transaction looked set to be confirmed. But Tottenham have continued to push for the player to be allowed to join them straight away to the point where it became a deal-breaker. There is understood to be precious little chance of the deal being revived before the window shuts on Monday night.

Amid acrimony and accusations of agreements being reneged upon, Dembélé has been left disappointed and Tottenham will have to look elsewhere for the cover up front for Harry Kane that they need immediately. They could make a move for West Bromwich Albion’s Saido Berahino, the striker that they unsuccessfully tried to sign last summer.

Fulham are also set to tie their other main forward, Ross McCormack, to a lucrative, new long-term contract. The club rejected a £9m offer for McCormack from Middlesbrough and then turned down a transfer request he submitted. But he has been appeased by their offer of increased terms and he is expected to sign on Monday.

Another transfer which has seemingly fallen through is Jordan Rhodes’s move from Blackburn Rovers to Middlesbrough. Rhodes was quoted as being “baffled and disappointed” by Middlesbrough’s decision to withdraw from the deal. The forward said he passed a medical and agreed personal terms on a switch to the Riverside Stadium on Saturday, but was informed on Sunday morning that Middlesbrough had cancelled the move. However, Middlesbrough have claimed the deal broke down because they were unable to agree terms with Rhodes.

“The club can confirm that we have held talks with Blackburn Rovers striker Jordan Rhodes over the weekend but have failed to agree terms,” a statement from the club’s official website read. On Friday Middlesbrough released a statement confirming they had agreed a fee with Blackburn for Rhodes, who is contracted at Ewood Park until July 2019. The transfer fee was reportedly worth £11m – £9m up front and £2m in add-ons. But Rhodes now looks set to see out the 2015-16 campaign with Blackburn. Rhodes has scored 85 goals in 169 matches for Blackburn since leaving Huddersfield, where he netted 87 times in 148 games, in a deal worth up to £8m in August 2012.