Tottenham Hotspur's Mousa Dembele joins China's Guangzhou R&F

Tottenham has sold midfielder Mousa Dembele to Chinese Super League side Guangzho R&F.

The 31-year-old Dembele played a prominent role in Tottenham's resurgence under Mauricio Pochettino but he would have been out of contract at the end of the season. Dembele, who was part of the Belgium squad that finished third at the World Cup, signed a three-year deal in China.

Tottenham's Mousa Dembele, right, competes for the ball with Watford's Kiko Femenia during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Watford at Wembley stadium in London, Monday, April 30, 2018. [Photo: AP]

Dembele joined Spurs from Fulham in 2012 and made 250 appearances, but had not played since Nov. 3 due to an ankle injury.

Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen says "sometimes it made me angry a bit that people talked about the best midfielders in the Premier League and haven't named Mousa, but I feel like he got that appreciation over the last two years."