Middlesbrough are resigned to losing Tottenham target Djed Spence in the summer.

According to ESPN, Spence is set to leave the Riverside Stadium amid interest from several Premier League clubs including Brighton and West Ham.

The 19-year-old has impressed for Middlesbrough this season but the Championship club fear that they face an uphill struggle to keep him this summer, even though he signed an extension in February.

Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho admires the teenager, as he has heard first-hand rave reviews from his son Jose Mourinho Jr, who played with Spence in the Fulham academy. As a result, Spurs have been tracking Spence for some time, as Mourinho is keen to make improvements to the right-back position.

The Lilywhites have leaked goals for fun all season long, conceding more often than any other club in the top nine of the Premier League apart from Chelsea.

While Serge Aurier has become Mourinho's first-choice at right-back, his conduct has been scrutinised by the club, and Kyle Walker-Peters will be allowed to leave if he wishes once his loan at Southampton comes to an end.

Spence, who has been compared to Trent Alexander-Arnold and Aaron Wan-Bissaka by new 'Boro boss Neil Warnock, has played 20 games in the Championship, scoring one goal, creating three big chances, winning 1.2 tackles per game and completing 1.3 clearances per game on average (via SofaScore).

Middlesbrough would like him to stay for one more season but the pull of the Premier League may be too tempting for him to ignore. However, 'Boro could ask for as much as £10m, although this won't dissuade his suitors, with Burnley, Sheffield United and Southampton also closely monitoring the situation.

It seems as though Mourinho has identified Spence as Walker-Peters' replacement. The inexperienced youngster could be the perfect understudy for Aurier, working on the proviso that Tottenham cannot get rid of the Ivorian.

The 19-year-old Middlesbrough man is still largely untested at the top levels of the game but clearly has bags of potential judging by the level of interest in him, and he may turn out to be a shrewd investment for the future.

Tottenham fans, should Daniel Levy sign Djed Spence? Let us know in the comments below!