Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas has urged unhappy midfielder Tom Huddlestone not to quit the club in the summer because of a lack of first team football.

The 26-year-old recently stated that he may have to consider his future at White Hart Lane after struggling to become a regular in the heart of the Tottenham midfield under Villas-Boas.

Tom Huddlestone
Tom Huddlestone has hinted that he may leave Tottenham if he cannot land regular first team action. [Reuters]

Huddlestone has made just 13 Premier League appearances this season and particularly struggled to make an impact in the early stages of the season when Brazilian midfielder Sandro was impressing playing alongside Mousa Dembele.

Even with Sandro sidelined through injury, it has been Scott Parker who has consolidated his place in the starting line-up, with Huddlestone finally able to make a significant impact in the 3-1 win over Manchester City when he was introduced from the bench.

The former Derby midfielder stated last week that he may have to consider leaving Spurs in the summer if he was not able to regularly feature next season.

"I am 26 now. I missed a year to 18 months through injury. You just want to play every game and if that opportunity is not at Tottenham then I will have to look elsewhere," explained Huddlestone.

With Tom Carroll and Jake Livermore also pushing for a place in the starting XI, there will certainly be no guarantees of a regular place for Huddlestone, but Villas-Boas believes he should remain as he has showed his class in recent weeks.

"It is difficult [for him] to break into the team," the Spurs boss told FourFourTwo. "But with performances like this [one against Manchester City] he is able to get more chances, definitely."

Villas-Boas also said he understood the comments from Huddlestone who has two years remaining on his contract at Tottenham.

"The words are understandable from a player who has not been involved as much as he wanted," he added. "I think we have seen lots of players in midfield this season raise a level. From the moment Sandro got injured, he was the number-one recoverer of the ball and Mousa was also in the top ten.

"So it was very difficult for him to get into the team and when the chance happened it opened up for Scotty [Parker]."