Alan Hutton claims that Toby Alderweireld’s new contract could be the “catalyst” for Tottenham to hit new heights as a club.

The former Spurs and Scotland defender, speaking exclusively to Football Insider assistant editor Russell Edge, says that the Belgian’s new deal is a sign the club are willing to break what was a stringent wage structure under Daniel Levy.

Tottenham confirmed on Friday that the centre-back had put pen to paper on a contract keeping him tied down to 2023, ending speculation over his future in north London.

With Tottenham having been reluctant to hand out long-term deals to an older player like Alderweireld, Hutton says it may signal a change of approach from Daniel Levy.

He went on to suggest that Jan Vertonghen could follow in his fellow countryman’s footsteps, with his contract set to expire at the end of the season.

Hutton told Football Insider: “Tottenham have always had a wage structure, that’s the way they run the ship, that’s the way it is, that’s Daniel Levy and they’ve not really broke it for anybody bar someone like Harry Kane.

“It seems like they are now edging just outside it to keep these big stars because they have to if they want to be a big club. If they want to get to that next level they have to compete on the wage front.

“Maybe this is the catalyst for Vertonghen to move forward and get his deal signed because he’s seen his friend, his partner on the pitch sign a new deal and obviously the wage structure works for him.”

As well as Alderweireld, Tottenham handed fellow 30-year-old Moussa Sissoko a new deal earlier in the season, while Vertonghen and Christian Eriksen are both out of contract in the summer.

In other Tottenham news, Alan Hutton has been left drooling over the club’s pursuit of an attacker who would fit right in at the club.