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Tottenham Hotspur Links: Michy Batshuayi Transfer Talks on Hold Until Summer

By Alexander Balano

Jul 28, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Tottenham Hotspur head coach Mauricio Pochettino talks with his team during training in advance of the 2015 MLS All Star Game at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 28, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Tottenham Hotspur head coach Mauricio Pochettino talks with his team during training in advance of the 2015 MLS All Star Game at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tottenham Hotspur Links is back after yesterday’s error.

After yesterday’s Tottenham Hotspur Links was missing due to a technical error with the article appearing as lost and/or deleted right after publishing, well THL is back this time around. Here are the stories for the day. First up, Tottenham’s transfer talks for Michy Batshuayi will be on hold until this summer. As the Belgian striker feels a mid-season move could affect his place in Marc Wilmots’ squad for Euro 2016.

The second story is the schedule for Spurs’ Europa League Round of 32 dates and kickoff times. Both legs will happen in the month of February and pushes their total matches from four to six and will be another busy time for Tottenham. Lastly, Mousa Dembélé is back and training with Tottenham ahead of their Saturday fixture against Southampton at St. Mary’s Stadium. Let’s get to the links.

RELATED: Tottenham Links: Does the Europa League Hurt Premier League clubs?

If Tottenham are still interested in Belgian striker, Michy Batshuayi, then they’ll have to wait until this summer as the 22-year-old isn’t looking for a mid-season move.

Het Nieuwsblad in Belgium reportedly suggests that Batshuayi is happy to remain with Olympique Marseille for the rest of the season. And when you look at his numbers, continuing to play in Ligue 1 is a good move: 14 goals in 23 appearances.

By opting to remain with Marseille, Michy Batshuayi hopes to be a part of Belgium manager Marc Wilmots’ plans. As well as not risking his starting spot and sharing first-team duties with Harry Kane. Doing so will force Mauricio Pochettino to look elsewhere and move on. Moving on is probably the best idea if Marseille president, Vincent Labrune, was intent on offering the striker a ridiculous wage of €700,000 a month.

“If I could offer him €700,000 a month, I would. But that is impossible,” Labrune said, Le Sport 10 reports. “If you go in the Champions League next year, and Michy wants to stay one more season, it would be a pleasure.” Getting into the Champions League is key here, because if Marseille doesn’t qualify, even a £35 million price tag according to the Mirror won’t be enough to keep the 22-year-old from other clubs signing him.

More from Hotspur HQ

When the Europa League’s Round of 32 draw was revealed on Monday, December 14, it was announced that Tottenham and Fiorentina would be heading for a rematch after last season’s loss to the Viola in the same round.

The first leg is scheduled for Thursday, February 18, at 6:00 PM (UK time) at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence. The return leg will be at White Hart Lane on Thursday, February 25, at 8:05 PM.

Looking ahead to these two legs against Fiorentina in the Europa League, Spurs have four Premier League matches to worry about. And two stand out: Saturday, February 6, against Watford (7th) at White Hart Lane and on Saturday, February 13, against Manchester City (3rd) at the Etihad Stadium.

Obviously Mauricio Pochettino has been adamant about pushing for a long Europa League campaign this season so it will be a tough task to take on Watford (home), Man City (away), Fiorentina first leg (away) and Fiorentina second leg (home) in a span of 19 days. It also depends on whether Pochettino views the FA Cup as worthwhile when Tottenham are heavily invested in the Premier League and Europa League as is.

Mousa Dembélé is back in training with Tottenham ahead of their clash with Southampton at St. Mary’s Stadium. This is good news to have after Spurs missed having his presence at central midfield to help blunt Newcastle’s counterattack before they would run down the flanks and put pressure on Tottenham’s defense.

A double pivot of Eric Dier and Tom Carroll wasn’t bad per se against the Magpies. It made sense to give Carroll his first Premier League start with Tottenham following a good showing against AS Monaco in the Europa League. But defensively Carroll couldn’t help Spurs as much as Dembélé would have.

Next: Spurs' Lamela in UEFA Europa league XI

Moving forward, with the 28-year-old Belgian back in the fold, this could help Spurs regain their central midfield presence and alter the starting lineup slightly once again. Does Dembélé start next to Dier? Is Alli still playing in the number 10 role? Should Son Heung-min start rather than come off of the bench? Here’s hoping that Mousa Dembélé stays healthy for the rest of the season as he’s too important to miss for a certain amount of time.