Let’s talk about Danny Rose for a second. Currently the longest tenured player in Tottenham Hotspur’s first team with a decade under his belt at Spurs, Rose has cast something of a disgruntled figure in recent seasons. He’s naturally outspoken, yes, and that’s gotten him into trouble in the past as he made his views about the club and his role in it plain time and time again. I have argued that Danny has been right more often than he’s been wrong when he has chosen to speak publicly about his perceived grievances, but that doesn’t mean that his comments aren’t going to be spun or his antics enhanced.

Today, the Daily Mail printed an article that alleges an altercation between Rose and Tottenham head coach Jose Mourinho. The details aren’t super important, but it involved some contradictory reports of whether rose was or wasn’t match fit ahead of the Watford draw. The Mail would have you believe that Rose was upset that an out-of-position Japhet Tanganga and Ryan Sessegnon were selected to play at left back and Rose was left out of the match day squad. There were apparently “raised voices” and “a big tension in the air.” Other players “were understood to be unhappy at how Rose’s reaction.”

Blah blah blah. Maybe it’s at least partially true, but it’s not like the Mail has ever spun a training ground situation at a football club to be more dramatic than it actually was. Mourinho, for his part, addressed the controversy in his pre-match press conference.

“I don’t have any problem with him. He was not selected against Watford and Middlesbrough. The reason he was not selected against Middlesbrough is we have a young left-back we want to develop and it was a great opportunity to play Sessegnon. And also because his performance against Liverpool was not phenomenal. “On the Thursday before Watford, late evening, I got a call from my medical staff saying that Danny was calling them with a problem in his back and he wouldn’t train the next day. “So Friday, the day before the game, it was a bit of surprise that he was ready to train. It was not a big problem but even so I decided then to play with Tanganga and have Ryan on the bench. That’s the situation.”

We’re dealing with two polarizing figures who are both outspoken and who both are adept at spinning the English media (though it’s notable that we haven’t heard Rose’s side of the story), and ultimately I’d bet a substantial amount of money that this isn’t nearly as big a deal as everyone is making it out to be.

But it does feed nicely into the OTHER bit of Danny Rose news to break today.

Fresh on the heels of securing a loan for former Tottenham midfielder Nabil Bentaleb, Newcastle United is now considering making an offer for Danny in this January transfer window, or as the Telegraph calls it, “an escape route.” Toon’s starting left back Jetro Willems is out for the rest of the season after rupturing his ACL in their win over Chelsea this past weekend. Steve Bruce was reportedly interested in Rose this past summer, and Spurs were also keen to sell him, though obviously Bruce decided to bring in Willems on loan from Frankfurt instead of making an offer from Rose.

In a lot of ways Newcastle would make a lot of sense for Danny. Rose has also said that he wants to play “up north” before the end of his career, and you can’t get much more north than Newcastle. He would also probably do well at Newcastle under Bruce, assuming he stays at the club. Rose played at Leeds before signing for Spurs, and if they were to promote this season a homecoming might also be appealing to Danny at what would likely be the tail end of his career.

I don’t know how realistic this rumor is for January. Spurs are obviously not doing well at either fullback position, and although Ben Davies is nearly back to fitness, it does seem a bit risky to sell your ten year public servant and backup in these circumstances. Likewise, Danny has said publicly that he isn’t going anywhere this window or the next two, as he’s planning on seeing out his contract, which expires at the end of the 2020-21 season.

For now, I wouldn’t put too much stock in this rumor as it seems driven more by Newcastle’s injury needs and Danny’s stubbornness and perceived conflict. But if Newcastle were serious about giving Danny a way out of Tottenham, and he were similarly interested in a move, would you take it?