Tottenham Hotspur are known for their core of young English talent, but are stepping up their search for the next Didier Zokora. Spurs are considering developing a relationship with FC Bruges with a view to using the Belgian club as a breeding ground for African talent, as Arsenal did with Beveren.

The idea of Bruges becoming a feeder club was mooted when Tottenham hosted the Belgian club in the Uefa Cup last month. Last week, Marc Degryse, the Bruges technical director, visited London and held talks with Tottenham, Fulham and West Ham United.

Discussions with the last two were preliminary and nothing concrete emerged. However, negotiations with Tottenham are believed to be farther advanced, with the boards of both clubs yet to decide whether to proceed. “We are supposed to fit in their plans for the long term,” Degryse said.

It is understood that Tottenham are more interested in receiving players from Bruges than sending their own to Belgium.

Several Barclays Premiership clubs are developing alliances across Europe. In Belgium alone, Chelsea have ties with KVC Westerlo, Blackburn Rovers are linked to Cercle Bruges and Germinal Beerschot and Charlton Athletic signed a “collaboration deal” last year. Manchester United have a long-standing agreement with Royal Antwerp and five United youngsters are on loan there.

Tottenham and Bruges may be considering emulating a system created by Jean-Marc Guillou, a former France midfield player and a friend of Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager, who formalised a trade route between Africa and Europe. Guillou set up a system in Ivory Coast, pouring money into academies and taking the most promising players to Beveren, where he was sporting director.

Belgium’s relatively lax immigration rules mean that it takes only two years to get an EU passport. Guillou imported Ivorians and the best were sold on without facing work-permit problems. Beveren have 12 Ivorians on their books.

Arsenal’s five-year partnership with Beveren ended this year when Guillou left the club. Emmanuel Eboué is the only player to have moved permanently between the teams. Kolo Touré, his Ivory Coast team-mate, joined Arsenal directly from Guillou’s ASEC Mimosas Academy. Zokora, the Ivory Coast midfield player who moved to White Hart Lane for £8.2 million from Saint-Etienne in July, was a member of the Mimosas Academy.