Nottingham Forest are adamant Morgan Gibbs-White is not leaving the club but are yet to lodge a formal complaint with the Premier League about Tottenham's conduct in their attempts to sign the midfielder.
Sky Sports News can reveal that Forest have been trying for almost a year to open negotiations with Gibbs-White over a new and improved contract at the City Ground, but he has chosen not to engage in those talks.
Forest are prepared to give him a huge pay rise, in exchange for the removal of the release clause, which would make him one of, if not the, biggest earners at the club.
Transfer Centre LIVE!
Nottingham Forest news & transfers🔴⚪ | Tottenham news & transfers⚪
Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺
Sky Sports to show 215 live PL games from next season
Sky Sports News has been told Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is prepared to lose significant sums of money to defend his position that Spurs made an alleged illegal approach for one of his side's best players and that there has been a breach of confidentiality in Tottenham seemingly being aware of the value of Gibbs-White's buy-out clause.
Sky Sports News' Rob Dorsett answers the key questions around the transfer saga...
Are Spurs still keen to do a deal?
Yes, we understand they are, but they're taking a watching brief with a month-and-a-half of the transfer window still to go.
Spurs have made it clear they are prepared to meet Gibbs-White's buy-out clause, which has been widely reported to be worth £60m.
It is possible that Spurs make an increased offer - above the level of the reported buy-out clause - to try to appease Forest and re-open lines of communication. But there are no indications Tottenham are prepared to do that and it is far from clear whether that would work, with Marinakis currently resolute in his position.
What does the current contract situation mean?
From Forest's point of view, Gibbs-White's refusal to discuss a new contract shows he doesn't have a long-term commitment to Forest.
Concerning his current contract, legally there is a conflict between the rights of the employer and those of the employee.
Forest have a contractual agreement for the terms of Gibbs-White's contract - and specifically the level of his release clause - to be kept confidential, so if that has been breached, they have a legal case.
Conversely, Gibbs-White has a contractual agreement that if another club is prepared to pay a certain transfer fee, he can leave the City Ground. He has a potential legal claim there too.
Neither side wants to see this end up in the courts but both sides have that as a possibility in the background.
So what's next?
The result is the current stalemate. If he really wants to join Tottenham, it may be that Gibbs-White has to bring legal action against Forest, claiming a breach of contract to try to force a move.
He could go on strike or put in a formal transfer request. There is no indication that he is prepared to do that currently, and in fact he returned to pre-season training as scheduled on Monday with the rest of Forest's international players. Contrary to some social media reports, he was at training in Nottingham again on Tuesday.
Sky Sports News has been told Tottenham have no current plans to do anything at this stage but they certainly haven't given up in their attempts to sign Gibbs-White. It is clear they feel they have done nothing wrong and nothing different from what most clubs do when they are considering a transfer offer for a player, but first want to gauge whether that player would be open to the idea.
How difficult is this situation for Forest?
It is a very sensitive one. They don't want arguably their best player to be unhappy, but they also don't want to be viewed as a 'selling club' or one that is lacking ambition.
Following the departure of Anthony Elanga to Newcastle, were Gibbs-White to leave too, Forest will have lost two of their best players - albeit by earning £115m - before the season starts.
Marinakis will strongly defend his own reputation and the standing of his football club, although the presence of the release clause is of real concern and ultimately means Forest don't have control over the future of one of their key assets.
Marinakis and Daniel Levy, the Tottenham chairman, are among the toughest negotiators in the Premier League and neither is likely to back down.
Neither Forest nor Spurs have commented on these latest developments.
Sky Sports to show 215 live Premier League games from 2025/26
From next season, Sky Sports' Premier League coverage will increase from 128 matches to at least 215 games exclusively live.
And 80 per cent of all televised Premier League games next season are on Sky Sports.