A Tottenham Hotspur insider claims that only one of the three Brighton stars tipped to join up with Roberto De Zerbi again in north London is likely to sign this summer.
After another season that culminated in a second successive 17th-placed Premier League finish, Spurs turned to De Zerbi to stop the rot after giving the Italian a five-year contract to galvanise an under-performing squad.
His first job was to stave off the threat of relegation, which only come on the final day of the season, but the club’s board have since revealed that the Italian will be given significant funds to halt Tottenham‘s dramatic slide down the table.
While all areas of the squad are being looked at, deals to sign experienced duo Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi on free transfers are already in place and close to completion.
The defensive stalwarts will be strong voices both on and off the pitch, while fresh reports claim De Zerbi is also reshaping his front line with a trio on new attacking signings woth £125m potentially on the way.
But in terms of the trio of Brighton stars who De Zerbi has eyes on, Spurs insider John Wenham claims that centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke is the “most likely” to end up in north London this summer, despite the imminent addition of Senesi.
The potential arrival of two new central defenders is perhaps not that surprising, given continued doubts over the futures of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, while highly-rated prospect Luka Vuskovic could be loaned back to Hamburg for another season.
But with De Zerbi being backed to shape the squad to his high-octane method of play, links to some of his former players on the south coast are obvious.
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‘Commanding’ Van Hecke a strong Tottenham fit
Van Hecke, defensive midfielder Carlos Baleba and goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen are the three names in the frame for a move to Tottenham, with the former having played 50 times under De Zerbi.
And speaking to Tottenham News, Wenham discussed the interest in Brighton’s top talent, stating: “There were reports that De Zerbi would like to raid Brighton in a triple transfer for Verbruggen, Van Hecke and Baleba.
“Getting anybody out of Brighton is not easy, as we’ve seen with Chelsea repeatedly going there over the years and then huge sums of money being exchanged. To try and get three of their starting players out of their team, I just see it as incredibly unlikely.
“All three are in positions where we do need strengthening, make no mistake about that, but Van Hecke, when I saw him play at the Tottenham Stadium this year, I was very, very impressed with him, very commanding centre-back.
“He would be an excellent addition and seems the most likely of those three.”
Van Hecke was indeed outstanding in that draw at Spurs in April, assisting Brighton’s late equaliser in their 2-2 draw. The Dutchman also registered six goal contribution across the season to showcase his talents at both ends of the pitch.