(Football news) Steven Bergwijn is set to join Ajax after the Dutch champions agreed to pay €30m (£25.8m) and up to €2.5m in add-ons for the Dutch winger. The 24-year-old is due to have a medical on Wednesday as Spurs were holding out for a guaranteed €30m for the player they signed from PSV in January 2020 for a similar fee. Bergwijn has gone on to make 83 Tottenham appearances, scoring eight goals, but last season he made only four Premier League starts and only one under Antonio Conte.
Bergwijn has been a priority signing for Ajax since January and reportedly had agreed personal terms some time ago. The deal for the Netherlands international was important as Conte continues his rebuilding of the squad. He is set to sign French defender Clément Lenglet on loan from Barcelona, Tottenham have already spent £75m on Richarlison and Yves Bissouma and taken Fraser Forster and Ivan Perisic on free transfers. The only fee they received is £6m from Celtic for Cameron Carter-Vickers. Conte’s transfer budget was significantly boosted by the club’s owner who is going to support Antonio Conte after he helped the club get Champions League football last season.
After only two and a half years in England, Bergwijn has struggled to make his presence felt at Tottenham, failing to provide enough consistency to be a regular starter. This past season saw the Dutchman feature for only 500 minutes in league matches. Bergwijn’s role in the Tottenham side was under threat after the acquisition of Richarlison from Everton, thus compelling him to seek an exit away from north London. Interestingly, Everton were interested in securing the services of Bergwijn as a direct replacement for Richarlison but ultimately lost out to Ajax after the player expressed his interest to go back to Amsterdam,
It appears Ajax have been successful in their pursuit for the 24-year-old who was presumably keen on returning to the Eredivisie rather than trying his luck once again in the Premier League. Bergwijn’s move to Ajax could potentially create a domino effect, which could ultimately bode well for Manchester United. The former PSV Eindhoven star can be viewed as a direct replacement for Antony, who has been closely linked with a move to Old Trafford ever since Erik ten Hag became their new manager. Although Manchester United have been slapped with a €80m price tag for Antony this summer, Ajax could be forced to hold out for a lower fee if they end up signing a replacement.
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