Tottenham are believed to have been rebuffed in their efforts to sign Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic after a £12m offer was rejected by the Italian side.

The north London club attempted to sign Pjanic in the summer but were unable to convince Roma to part with the 22-year-old.

Miralem Pjanic
Pjanic [right] in action for Bosina [Reuters]

The Mirror has reported that during Tottenham's trip to Rome on Thursday for the Europa League tie against Lazio, officials tabled an offer of £12million for Pjanic was immediately rejected.

Spurs had hoped to bring the Bosnia and Herzegovina international to White Hart Lane in January but it seems Roma are determined to keep one of their most talented midfielders.

Roma general manager Franco Baldini is clearly keen to keep hold of the midfielder who demonstrated his ability last weekend when he scored a free-kick from all of 45 yards in the 3-2 loss to rivals Lazio.

The agent of Pjanic, Michele Gerbino, has also suggested that the midfielder is unlikely to be sold in the New Year, but has given Tottenham some hope by saying his situation could change in the summer.

"It is difficult to see Miralem moving during the season but we will look at the sums at the end of the season," he said.

Pjanic cost the Italian side £9million when he moved from Lyon in the summer of 2011 and he instantly made an impact in the Roma side as he contributed three goals and nine assists in the league.

With 37 caps already to his name for Bosnia, he has firmly established himself in the national side and would certainly add some creativity to the Tottenham side.

Spurs have struggled in recent games without the influence of the injured Moussa Dembele in central midfield, with Clint Dempsey and Gylfi Sigurdsson yet to show their best from since signing in the summer.

Andre Villas-Boas is clearly keen to recruit the midfielder and it seems he is not yet satisfied with the options he has in midfield after Luka Modric and Rafael van der Vaart both departed.