05.05.2016 17:15 h

Tottenham closing in on Wembley move, says FA chief

Tottenham Hotspur are a "long way" towards reaching an agreement that will allow them to play home games at Wembley Stadium in 2017/18, Football Association chairman Greg Dyke said Thursday.

Dyke also suggested Spurs, whose White Hart Lane home in north London is just 13 miles (21 kilometres) from Wembley, could play their Champions League matches next season at England's national stadium, with the club having already qualified for the tournament.

Tottenham are building a £400 million ($579 million, 508 million euros) 61,000-capacity ground adjacent to White Hart Lane and hope to move into the new ground at the start of the 2018/19 season.

They could play Champions League games at Wembley next season as White Hart Lane's capacity is set to be reduced from its current maximum of 36,284 in order to help building work on the new stadium.

"We are certainly in discussion with Spurs that they should come in for the full season when they're rebuilding their stadium," Dyke told Sky Sports News.

"I think we're a long way down the path on reaching an agreement. I think there's some discussion about whether they'll play their Champions League games there at Wembley next year but I don't know much about that.

"On the full season, I think we're quite close to a deal," he said.

Dyke also said Tottenham's London rivals Chelsea could also play home games at Wembley in the near future.

Chelsea have plans to redevelop their Stamford Bridge ground, which could leave them needing a temporary home for at least several seasons.

"I think Chelsea might come for a longer period," said Dyke. "Chelsea have got really exciting plans for their stadium. They're going to demolish the whole thing and build a whole new stadium on the existing site.

"If they came (to Wembley), that would mean them coming for three years."