Tottenham Hotspur make offer for Brighton & Hove Albion defender Jan Paul van Hecke – The Athletic
Tottenham Hotspur have made an offer to sign defender Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton & Hove Albion.
The proposal for the 25-year-old fell short of Brighton’s valuation, but talks continue.
Van Hecke is close to Tottenham head coach Roberto De Zerbi from their time working together at Brighton from 2022 to 2024.
In April, Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler said he expected to talk to Van Hecke about his future, with the Dutchman’s contract expiring in June 2027. The Athletic reported earlier this week that Van Hecke had so far shown no interest in extending his deal and was one of three Brighton players, alongside compatriot Bart Verbruggen and midfielder Carlos Baleba, that are candidates for a big sale this summer.
Van Hecke has been named in the Netherlands squad for the 2026 World Cup and played 87 minutes of Wednesday’s 1-0 friendly defeat by Algeria in Rotterdam. He has been capped 11 times by his country.
The centre-back first joined Brighton in 2020 from Dutch side NAC Breda and has had loan spells at Heerenveen and Blackburn Rovers before beginning to establish himself in the Brighton first team in the 2022-23 season. He has made 131 appearances for Brighton, with 106 of those coming in the Premier League.
Last season, Van Hecke was a mainstay in Fabian Hurzeler’s back four, starting 36 Premier League games and missing only two due to injury.
In addition to Spurs’ pursuit of Van Hecke, the club are set to sign Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi on a four-year deal. The 29-year-old’s contract at the south-coast club is due to expire this summer, and he is now expected to complete a move to north London.
A progressive defender and possible Romero replacement
Analysis by Seb Stafford-Bloor
Van Hecke is one of the better all-round defenders in the Premier League.
A tough, combative, right-footer who can also carry and pass the ball out of his own defensive area as well as anyone; Tottenham’s interest would indicate that they are searching for Cristian Romero’s replacement.
Given the season that Spurs have just endured, Van Hecke might be the prospect available to them in that position. During our recent Transfer Tiers series, during which The Athletic asked industry experts to rank players based on their likely destination — Champions League contender, Champions League qualifier and the rest — Van Hecke was right in the middle of Tier Two.
Van Hecke was a mainstay in Hurzeler’s defence last season. (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Quite rightly so; he has earned his reputation. He will be going to the World Cup with the Netherlands and based on the team Ronald Koeman fielded against Algeria on Wednesday night, has a very good chance of starting between Virgil van Dijk and Micky van de Ven (who often plays as a full-back for his country).
Given Van Hecke’s contract situation (due to expire in 2027), this summer was always going to bring significant interest — and from clubs currently operating above Tottenham’s station.
But here perhaps lies the value of Roberto De Zerbi, with whom Van Hecke worked highly successfully at Brighton and whose tactical imperatives so obviously suit the Dutch centre-half and his progressive style of play.
