The agent of the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Lewis Holtby says his client could make a return to his former club Schalke this winter in a bid to play more regularly.

The 23-year-old has struggled to make an impact since joining Spurs a year ago and his agent Marcus Noack has suggested a return to the Royal Blues in an attempt to boost his dwindling hopes of appearing for Germany at the World Cup in the summer.

"Lewis is desperate to play, which is why we are looking intensively for solutions," Noack told the Bild newspaper. "Schalke is an interesting option."

Holtby left Schalke for Tottenham a year ago after 18 months with the Bundesliga club

Menawhile the Spurs winger Andros Townsend marked his return from a hamstring injury with a goal in the Under-21s' 4-1 win over Newcastle.

The 22-year-old has been sidelined since before Christmas, but made quite an impact at Bishop's Stortford as he set up the opening goal for Souleymane Coulibaly on 19 minutes, then added a second himself shortly afterwards when cutting inside from the left and also had a hand in Spurs' third goal before being replaced at half-time by Aaron McEneff.