German club Schalke 04 look set to go after Nabil Bentaleb on a permanent basis.
Reports suggest that the Bundesliga outfit are planning to exercise their option to buy the Algerian midfielder from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer.
Bentaleb, 21, has impressed early in his season-long loan spell with S04, scoring three goals in his past two outings.
It is understood that there is a non-exclusive £17million clause in Bentaleb's contract which Schalke plan to activate and he is expected to make his home in Gelsenkirchen provided no rival clubs make larger offers to Spurs.