Middlesbrough will only sell Djed Spence for the right price as they don't depend on the sale

Chris Wilder expects Djed Spence to leave Middlesbrough this summer but will be prepared to use him if an acceptable offer does not arrive. Tottenham are believed to leading the race to sign the right-back, but Wilder insists that Boro won't be bullied into selling the defender for below his market value.

Spence is in high demand this summer after a stellar season while on loan at Nottingham Forest. He helped Forest win promotion back to the Premier League but they appear to have moved on to alternative targets as Spence appears to favour a move to Spurs. With two years left on his Boro deal, the club have some power and Wilder would have no hesitation in playing the 22-year-old if no deal was concluded.

It's not known exactly how much Boro want for Spence this summer, though recent reports elsewhere have suggested that talks between the two clubs have reached an impasse as the Premier League club have reportedly only been willing to offer £10 million up front, with Boro wanting at least £15 million. Those figures are hearsay for now, but what's clear is that Boro won't agree to a sale unless the price works for them, with Wilder insisting they are fair with the valuation and won't be bullied into selling him below his value.

Tottenham told Boro's Djed Spence would be a 'great signing'

“If nothing happens with Djed, then he’s our player and he’ll be back for pre-season," Wilder insisted. "From my point of view, negotiations between Kieran [Scott], Neil [Bausor], Steve [Gibson] and Tottenham stay between Kieran, Neil, Steve and Tottenham. If the deal doesn’t get done, we’ll see where we go from there.

"Have I got an input into it? Yeah, 100 per cent. The boy obviously doesn’t want to come back here, which I’ve got