THERESA May "begged" for help with Brexit, according to a leaked account of a dinner between the Prime Minister and the European Commission chief.

However, a senior aide to Jean-Claude Juncker has hit back after being accused of leaking the sensitive details.

Theresa May's former chief of staff, Nick Timothy, blamed Martin Selmayr for an account of the private meeting published by German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ).

But Selmayr, Juncker's chief of staff, accused Timothy of spreading "false" claims and insisted that Brussels did not want to weaken the Prime Minister's position.

In his response to Timothy he suggested there were some people who had an interest in undermining the "constructive" relationship between Juncker and May.

In the highly personal account of last Monday's dinner, May was said to have "begged for help", and seemed "anxious" and "tormented" as well as "despondent and discouraged", according to FAZ.

The newspaper reported that May "indicated that back home friend and foe are at her back plotting to bring her down. May said she had no room left to manoeuvre."

“The Europeans have to create it for her. May's face and appearance spoke volumes," Juncker is said to have later told his colleagues.

“She has deep rings under her eyes. She looks like someone who can't sleep a wink.”

After the dinner, a joint statement was released agreeing to accelerate Brexit talks.

And later in the week, at the European Council summit, EU leaders said they would begin scoping work on future trade talks while making clear to May that she must make more concessions on Britain's divorce payment for negotiations to progress.

Earlier this year, Selmayr was accused of leaking to FAZ details of a private dinner between May and Juncker at 10 Downing Street, which the Commission president was said to have left "10 times more sceptical" than when he arrived.

Timothy, who worked for May at the time of the previous leak, said the new disclosure showed there are figures in Brussels who want Britain to leave the EU with either no deal or on terms which would punish the country for Brexit.

He tweeted: "After constructive Council meeting, Selmayr does this. Reminder that some in Brussels want no deal or a punitive one."

But Selmayr responded with his own tweet: "This is false. I know it does't fit your cliche, @NickJTimothy. But @JunckerEU & I have no interest in weakening PM.

"But it seems some have interest in undermining constructive relations @JunckerEU & PM May. Who? is the real question."

He denied being behind the leak or that Juncker ever made the comments about May's emotional sate.

He also dismissed the suggestion the EU was being "punitive" and claimed it was an attempt to frame the EU side of the negotiations and "undermine talks".