AdminTottenham Hotspur have had a second transfer bid rejected in their pursuit of Jan Paul van Hecke, according to Brighton CEO Paul Barber.
Spurs are ramping up their summer business early having already signed Andy Robertson on a free transfer from Liverpool.
Tottenham’s transfer moves
A deal for Bournemouth centre-back Marcos Senesi is also expected to be completed – also on a free.
Last week then saw a bid for Brighton’s Dutch international Van Hecke rejected.
Van Hecke is entering the final year of his contract with the Seagulls having joined them in 2020 for just £2million from NAC Breda.
After loans with Heerenveen and Blackburn, the defender has developed into a fine Premier League player, also winning 11 caps for his nation.
What’s the deal with Van Hecke?
talkSPORT understands both Liverpool and Newcastle have also cast admiring glances towards Van Hecke.
As reported in April, Brighton will want around £50m for his signature, that’s despite the fact he’s heading into the final year of his deal.
The value of Spurs’ initial bid is unknown and now, in an interview on the Sunday Edition on talkSPORT, Brighton chief Barber confirmed a second approach had been rejected.
And he warned Tottenham the finances of the deal have to be right for both the club and the player to get done.
What did Paul Barber tell talkSPORT?
He told talkSPORT: “There’s always going to be a lot of interest in our best players, and certainly in the case of Jan Paul.
“We’ve been very clear that that interest has been ongoing for a while, it’s coming from multiple sources.
“Yes, we have rejected a bid from Tottenham over the last week or so, in fact, two bids.
“From that point of view, it has to be right for us as well as the player.
“We have to be in a position to make the best trades to suit our model and also to make sure that we’re supporting Fabian [Hurzeler], because he’s got another big season ahead of him.
“He’s had two seasons in the Premier League, he’s finished eighth on both occasions, this time we’ve been fortunate enough to qualify for a European competition.
“We want to go as deep in that competition as we can, while also doing well in the Premier League.
“To do that, we need to make sure Fabian’s got the best possible squad and we’ve got the right balance between the young players that typically we like to bring in and develop, and the more experienced players like Pascal Gross and others, who can actually help us progress in all of the competitions that we’re in.
“As always, it’s a balancing act, and hopefully this summer we can work hard to pull it off again.”
What does it mean for Tottenham’s defence?
Tottenham are looking to make massive improvements next season after a shocking season nearly saw them relegated from the Premier League.
It appears likely one major mover may well be captain Cristian Romero whose ill-discipline across the season saw his standing diminish rapidly.
He missed six Premier League games through suspension with Tottenham losing all but one of those as they survived a relegation battle by just two points.
Romero’s commitment to the cause also came into question ahead of their crunch final day clash with Everton.
As captain it was expected he would be in attendance, despite a knee injury suffered in Roberto De Zerbi’s first game in charge of the club.
However, it had looked like he would avoid the game and watch boyhood club Belgrano in their title-decider back in Argentina.
In the end, Romero did return from his homeland but fans appear to have turned on the Europa League winner, who has previously had transfer interest from Atletico Madrid.
Tottenham must also make a decision on the future of wonderkid Luka Vuskovic, who starred for Hamburg in the Bundesliga this season.
Admin