Tottenham Hotspur’s stance on Conor Gallagher has come to light as interest builds in the midfielder, who has started just four of the Lilywhites’ 10 Premier League matches this season.

Everton, Crystal Palace, Leeds and Aston Villa are all thought to be tracking Gallagher amidst his struggles to get into Roberto De Zerbi’s strongest eleven.

The Toffees, in particular, have held a long-term interest in the Spurs midfielder, having tracked him since his time at Chelsea and Atletico Madrid.

However, we have heard over recent days that the North London club are unlikely to entertain offers for Gallagher in January, and a new report has shed light on what Roberto De Zerbi thinks of the player.

Roberto De Zerbi sees Conor Gallagher as an asset for the Tottenham squad

Football Insider now claim that the Tottenham boss sees the Chelsea academy graduate as a ‘valuable asset’ and that he will ‘not allow him to leave’ N17 in the upcoming transfer window.

The report confirms that a number of Premier League clubs have been eyeing the England international ahead of the winter.

However, even though Gallagher has started only four Premier League games this season, De Zerbi is said to be a ‘big fan’ of the 26-year-old.

A January exit is thus likely to be blocked by the 46-year-old despite the growing interest in his services.

Football Insider also spoke to former Spurs scout Mick Brown, who insisted that he cannot see the midfielder leaving Tottenham in the upcoming transfer window.

Brown said: “I don’t see it at all really, Gallagher does get used quite often by Roberto De Zerbi. It’s only been around 12 months since he joined Tottenham from Atletico Madrid in that big-money move when he came into a struggling team when they were battling relegation.

“He has still got a big role to play at Tottenham, he’s under contract until 2031, and Roberto De Zerbi doesn’t want to lose somebody like Conor Gallagher as well.”

Gallagher may be considered a sellable asset next summer

Given that Xavi Simons is recovering from an ACL injury, and neither James Maddison nor Dejan Kulusevski has fully proven their fitness yet, there is little chance that Spurs would consider offloading Gallagher in January.

The former Atletico man has not let De Zerbi down whenever he has been handed an opportunity, and the Tottenham boss clearly sees him as a useful option in tough away games and as an impact substitute.

However, Spurs CEO Vinai Venkatesham has recently stressed the need for Tottenham to improve how they sell players. One would thus not be surprised if Gallagher is sold to the highest bidder next summer.