Mauricio Pochettino says 'complete' Jan Vertonghen will cushion blow if Tottenham lose Toby Alderweireld

Mauricio Pochettino believes the transformation of Jan Vertonghen into a “complete centre-back” means Tottenham would not be hard hit by a summer sale of fellow Belgium defender Toby Alderweireld.

Attempts to tie Alderweireld down to a new contract appear to have been in vain as the player is understood to be demanding £150,000-a-week.

Chairman Daniel Levy, who has imposed a wage ceiling that makes England forward Harry Kane poorly paid in comparison to colleagues at other top English clubs, appears unwilling to pay that for a player who turns 29 next week.

And in any case, Tottenham have been doing well without the former Atletico Madrid man, who has played only a couple of FA Cup ties since suffering a hamstring injury helping his side to a famous victory over Real Madrid in the Champions League in early November.

Now it is his Belgium team-mate Vertonghen who is regarded as the first pick when it comes to the back line, and results have not suffered while Davinson Sanchez, the 21-year-old Colombia international has deputised for Alderweireld, who is a doubt for Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace after pulling up in training on Thursday.

Pochettino described the partnership Vertonghen hastily forged with Sanchez as “fantastic” having already made it clear he wanted to play no part in any further negotiations with Alderweireld, whose contract expires next summer but includes a 12-month extension option that also allows the player to leave for £25m.

The Argentinian, who hopes to make up ground on Chelsea and Liverpool by winning at Selhurst Park, confirmed that a new deal for Vertonghen, who stands to be a free agent in 2019, had been sanctioned by Levy.

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“The club believe that he needs to be rewarded,” he said. “He is one of the important players in the side. In my opinion he’s one of the best centre backs in the Premier League and in Europe. He has unbelievable quality, physical condition, technique.

“He has improved in an aspect that was so important for him, the mental aspect. Now I think he is a complete centre-back. He is an athlete – he could play until he is 40 because his physical condition comes very naturally to him.”

Vertonghen may be a natural athlete but Pochettino had major misgivings about his desire to win games – the ‘mental aspect’ he mentioned.

Pochettino recalled watching the defender on television at Anfield in March 2014 when Tim Sherwood’s brief spell as Spurs manager was nearing an end.

“He was slouched in the tunnel,” he said. “I told him when I came ‘Why are you like that? You are here for a battle! You cannot show this body language – you are a warrior!’

“We worked a lot on this aspect and yes, it is true that we clash a lot in training because he is clever and always has an argument and a reason why, but in the end I appreciate his efforts.”

Pochettino has already recruited 20-year-old Argentinian Juan Foyth in the hope he will prove to be more than a squad player, although he has yet to make his Premier League debut.

“He is going to surprise many people,” he said. “Juan is a great kid with a lot of quality to become one of the fantastic centre-backs in the Premier League and Europe too.”