Tottenham Hotspur have received a major boost in their pursuit of mooted transfer target Ousmane Dembele this week...

What's the word?

The north London outfit were linked with interest in the French winger by the Spanish press earlier this month, with newspaper Mundo Deportivo (via Sport Witness) claiming that Spurs were monitoring his contractual situation at Barcelona.

Now, a big update has emerged as it is believed the 24-year-old - who once cost a whopping £135.5m in 2017 - will not sign an extension at the Nou Camp after negotiations broke down, meaning he will leave as a free agent in the summer, as per Goal.

This means that the Premier League outfit are free to speak to Dembele as early as January 1st, where discussions over a pre-contract agreement can take place.

Door opens

Spurs sporting director Fabio Paratici must now act as he has received his biggest boost yet in pursuit of the former Borussia Dortmund sensation.

Dembele has been hampered by persistent injury troubles during his time at the Catalan giants but whenever he has featured, it can be argued that he has delivered - indeed, he has directly contributed towards 53 goals from 126 appearances; a goal or assist every 137 minutes.

More than respectable for a winger.

By contrast, Lucas Moura has managed a direct goal contribution once every 177 minutes since his move from Paris Saint-Germain in January 2018.

During his time at Barcelona, one of the game's greatest-ever players, Lionel Messi, waxed lyrical about the £45m-rated French dynamo, having witnessed him on the training pitch and played alongside him in LaLiga and the Champions League.

"On the pitch, [Dembele] is a phenomenon and it depends on him [how good he becomes]," the ex-Barca superstar told Marca (via FourFourTwo) back in 2018. "He has all the opportunity in the world to do what he wants. He can be one of the best."

Meanwhile, the praise doesn't just stop there.

Club president Joan Laporta perhaps handed Dembele the most glowing of endorsements earlier this month. "I am enthusiastic about Dembele, he is better than Mbappe," he told TV3 (via Marca).

Therefore, if Spurs and Antonio Conte's interest in the out-of-contract Barca star is genuine, then the Italian will surely be buzzing by this latest bombshell.

The door has opened for Paratici and co to make their move, so Spurs fans should be excited about the potential of landing Dembele in 2022. They should try, at the very least, to sign him up.

AND in other news, Forget Hojbjerg: £17m-rated star who lost 60% duels must never play for Spurs again...