Vertonghen urges Poch and Spurs to value experienced stars… and try to win something – The Sun

JAN VERTONGHEN admits he feels very aware of his age — and Spurs players tend to be more conscious of their birth certificates than most.

Age is not just a number at Tottenham, where chairman Daniel Levy hasn’t tended to dish out lengthy deals to those in the second half of their careers.

And that was one of the issues leading to such an unsettled summer at White Hart Lane, with even Mauricio Pochettino admitting to “different agendas” in the dressing room.

But as Bayern Munich rock up for a Champions League clash tonight, the question is whether Spurs can ever hope to rule Europe if they don’t value their more experienced players.

Vertonghen is 32 and in the final year of his contract. Likewise, Toby Alderweireld, who is 30. And Danny Rose has two years to run at 29.

Christian Eriksen, 27, has turned down a long-term deal at Spurs in the vain hope of something more attractive elsewhere.

Lose those four long-servers and Spurs would be seriously lacking in top-level experience.

And you do not tend to win the Champions League without battle-hardened pros — the average age of winning teams being just shy of 28.

Ears did prick up around the dressing-room when Moussa Sissoko, aged 30, signed a new three-year deal with an option for a fourth.

Perhaps Levy, always so aware of re-sale value when negotiating contracts, is ready to satisfy some of the demands of his senior players.

Asked whether doubts over his contract have proved a distraction, Vertonghen replied: “Not a distraction. I’m very aware of my age. But I feel fairly young.

“I want to play as many games as I can at the highest possible level. I feel like I still have a couple of good years left in me.

“That’s definitely how I’m feeling now. I hope I can help the team for as long as I can.”

And on whether talks were ongoing, the Belgian added: “I prefer not to go too deep into that. But there is always some movement everywhere.”

Sitting alongside Pochettino at the eve-of-match press conference, Vertonghen was quizzed about being axed by his boss for the first three games of this season.

He said: “I want to play every game. I was disappointed. But that shows I’m still ambitious. I’m going to play as many games as I can this season. That depends on my performances.”

Pochettino (below) insisted he wants Vertonghen to stay beyond this season.

But the manager was once more at pains to point out that he has little to do with contract negotiations.

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