Former Everton and Aston Villa CEO Keith Wyness is not too impressed by what Tottenham Hotspur are doing in their pursuit of Brighton’s Jan Paul van Hecke.
Spurs are now reportedly readying a third offer of £60m for Van Hecke after Brighton turned down their two previous bids of £40m and £50m for the centre-back.
This is still lower than the mammoth £70m valuation that the Seagulls have put on the Dutchman, who has just a year left on his contract at the Amex Stadium.
Van Hecke’s agent has reportedly informed other suitors that his client wants to join Spurs, but the Lilywhites have now been handed a warning about their pursuit of the 25-year-old.
Tottenham warned they can be exploited by other clubs after Van Hecke offer
Keith Wyness has opined that it is poor business by Tottenham to pay £60m for Van Hecke, given his current contract situation.
The former Everton chief believes that the Spurs hierarchy are attempting to show their fans that they have turned a corner by paying over the odds for the Dutchman, and warned that clubs could take advantage of their desperation this summer.
When asked about Van Hecke’s proposed move to Tottenham, Wyness told Football Insider: “It’s not great business. Spurs may have to be careful here because they’re going to be seen as easy targets by a lot of clubs if they’re looking to buy players now.
“I think £50m plus add-ons would have been what Spurs should have offered, given that the player has one year left on his contract. That’s a pretty fair offer.
“There’s no doubt that he (Van Hecke) is a good talent and De Zerbi wants him, but Spurs are stuck in this thing of panicking slightly and wanting to show the fans that there is a future.
“They’re caught in that hard position. Look, it’s not great for Spurs, but at least if they get the player, they’ll have a quality asset, that’s for sure. “This is an expensive cost because of last season. That’s the whole thing. And so that’s sort of dragging on even more in terms of damage it’s doing to the club.”
Spurs are very close to clinching Ven Hecke deal
According to some sources, Tottenham expect their third and final offer for the Seagulls man to be accepted.
It has also been widely reported that the Brighton star has already agreed personal terms with Spurs ahead of a potential switch to N17.
In fact, journalist Joost Blaauwhof has said that Van Hecke is edging closer and closer to a switch to Tottenham, with the Lilywhites looking to strike a full agreement by Sunday.