Mido set for permanent Spurs return

Tottenham favourite Mido is to return to the club in a permanent deal as coach Martin Jol continues to add to his squad ahead of Thursday's transfer deadline.

The 23-year-old Egyptian striker spent 18 months on loan at White Hart Lane before going back to Italian club Roma in the summer.

Mido's future has been the subject of intense speculation in recent weeks but Egypt's national coach Hassan Shehata let it slip he was on his way back to Spurs after naming him in his squad for their African Nations Cup qualifier against Burundi this weekend.

Shehata said: "Mido told me he will travel to London to have a medical before signing for Tottenham. He will be back in Egypt on Wednesday to join up with his colleagues in the national team."

Mido's hopes of landing a permanent deal at the end of last season were wrecked when Spurs refused to meet Roma's asking price of £5million-plus.

Mido, who scored 11 times in 27 games last term, was a target for both Blackburn and Newcastle during the summer but the striker would prefer a move back to the capital.

Jol spent £10.9m luring Dimitar Berbatov from Bayer Leverkusen but after two defeats in their opening three games the Bulgarian striker has so far struggled to cope with the physical demands of the English game.

Roma insisted another loan deal for Mido was out of the question and so Spurs had no other option but to consider a permanent move for the Egyptian.

Although Mido appeared as a substitute in Roma's 4-3 defeat by Inter Milan in the Italian Super Cup on Saturday, coach Luciano Spalletti is understood to have informed Mido he is not part of his future plans.

Spurs, still waiting to hear if their £8m-plus offer for Middlesbrough's Stewart Downing will be accepted, are ready to continue their hunt for new players right up until the transfer deadline.

Tottenham's bid for Downing was attacked as "derisory" by Boro's chief executive Keith Lamb but the north London side remain hopeful a deal can be brokered.

But if they fail to land the player Jol has identified as their number one target, they will switch their attention to others capable of filling the left-sided berth.

And, as their move for Mido demonstrates, Spurs will remain active in the market until the last possible moment if the right players become available.

Comolli said: "We will remain proactive until midnight on the (August) 31st in the event of players becoming available who we feel will strengthen the squad.

"This will always be our objective but it is all about the availability of good players.

"We have been associated with many players during this period of intense speculation and where we have felt that comment is appropriate to distance ourselves from unhelpful inaccuracies, we have done so."