TOTTENHAM have emerged as surprise contenders to sign Edouard Mendy when Chelsea’s summer clearout kicks off.

Chelsea’s bitter rivals are preparing to say goodbye to long-serving keeper and captain Hugo Lloris at the end of the season.

Edouard Mendy is set to leave Chelsea at the end of the seasonCredit: Getty

With London rivals Tottenham surprise candidates to sign himCredit: Reuters

And that will pave the way for them to replace the World Cup-winning Frenchman with Edouard Mendy who is up for grabs as part of Chelsea’s cost-cutting plans.

Even though Spurs are yet to announce who will be their next permanent manager following the sacking of Antonio Conte, club scouts have been following Mendy closely for some time.

They are also fully aware of his current contract stand-off with Chelsea and that their London neighbours need to offload a raft of big names in the coming weeks to balance the books.

Mendy, 31, has rejected a six-year deal and failed to agree terms with new Blues chairman Todd Boehly.

And until recently he was kept out of the side by rival Kepa – only returning in last Saturday’s 2-2 draw at home to struggling Nottingham Forest.

Incoming Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino is fully aware that there must be a dressing room cull when he officially starts work on July 1.

Boehly and his fellow board members have spent around £600million on new players this season to the extent that the squad numbered 33 at one point.

Pochettino is aiming to trim that number to around 24 or 25 but the Argentine will want to replace Mendy with another keeper.

Chelsea and Tottenham have been fierce foes in recent years but relations have defrosted.

Relations plummeted when Chelsea nabbed Frank Arnesen from Tottenham to head up their youth development. There were also player tussles involving Luca Modric and Brazilian winger Willian.

But with new ownership at Stamford Bridge this year there has been a fresh start and with Chelsea needing to bring in cash from player sales a deal could be struck.

A vast array of first-teamers will be made effectively available once the season ends on May 28.

Left-back Marc Cucurella, who has struggled for consistency since signing from Brighton last summer is among those who could be sold.

Home-grown defender Trevoh Chalobah, plus midfielder Mason Mount, centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly and widemen Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech are favourites to go.

SOURCE: thesun.co.uk