The following article is a special report; all information presented has been gleaned from Football FanCast sources unless stated otherwise.

Juventus are hopeful of signing Christian Eriksen from Tottenham Hotspur but may wait until the summer to take him to Italy, sources have told Football FanCast.

The Denmark international is out of contract at the end of the season and has thus far shown no indication that he would like to extend his stay at the club.

The Italian giants are said to be "sniffing" around the midfielder prior to a potential swoop, and their chances of signing him could be supported by the fact that Spurs would like to snap up Juve’s Turkish centre-back Merih Demiral.

The 21-year-old was signed from Sassuolo in the summer but has made just four appearances for Juve this season, even providing an assist in the 3-1 Serie A win over Udinese.

Those familiar with Spurs’ recruitment have made it clear that manager Jose Mourinho would like to sign a defender in one of the next two transfer windows and Demiral is a target. Scouts have watched him play for both Juve and Sassuolo.

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Thus, there is a possibility that Demiral could play some role in determining Eriksen's future.

Of course, Spurs do not have a great deal of agency over his future - he can sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club next month - but there is the prospect of negotiations opening the door to talks over the Turkey international, who has won 11 caps for his country.

Sources within the club believe that Eriksen will leave in the summer because he wishes to receive a signing-on fee when he moves to a new club.

Spurs could feasibly open the lines of communication to Juve now, then, with a view to both finding out their plans for Eriksen - allowing them to prepare for his exit - and also making an enquiry as to their target's availability. Sources have suggested talks may take place in January.

An exit for Eriksen in the next transfer window would be preferable for Spurs, allowing the club to receive a fee, but there has been no indication that the Dane would countenance such a possibility.

Manchester United had been linked with a possible January move but sources claim there is “nothing” coming from the Red Devils ahead of the winter window.

Nonetheless, there is the potential for a tacit quid pro quo between Spurs and the Italian champions; they do nothing to disrupt and possibly even help facilitate Juve's discussions with Eriksen, in return for smoother negotiations over Demiral.

Juventus, of course, have signed a number of high-profile players on free transfers in recent seasons, including Aaron Ramsey from Arsenal and Emre Can from Liverpool.

Juve paid just €18m (£15.2m) for Demiral's signature and one assumes that they would want to turn a profit.

Eriksen has previously told the club that he wishes to play abroad in order to broaden his horizons and it was anticipated that interest would come from Spain, namely Real Madrid and Barcelona, in the summer.

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However, there were no bids forthcoming and a move to Italy now seems a realistic proposition for the want-away playmaker.

It could be a perfect situation for Spurs, who could use the Italian club's interest to swoop for their little-used defender, Demiral.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans have been reacting to a link with a swoop for a Championship star.