Brighton close to finalising deal for Ajax defender and Colwill pursuit begins to falter
According to journalist Marco Giordano, the Seagulls are close to finalising a a deal for the Nigerian defender, reported to be between £15-20m.
There is optimism from the club that a deal could be completed quickly, after Brighton decided to accelerate a move for the former Rangers man after struggling to secure a deal for Colwill, as Chelsea were reluctant to sell the 20-year-old.
Brighton have had two bids rejected for Colwill so far this summer, valued at £30m and £40m respectively
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The Albion have been interested in Bassey for a long time, having been keen on signing the defender before he joined Ajax last summer from Rangers for £18.7million.
The 23-year-old plays predominately as a centre-back, but can also operate on the left-hand side of defence, potentially providing cover for Pervis Estupinan, who is the only recognised left-back at the club.
Bassey scored once and provided five assists across 39 appearances for Ajax in all competitions last season, representing the club in the Champions League and Europa League.
READ MORE: Everton table £34.3m bid for striker, contract details shared
Everton table £34.3m bid for El Bilal Toure, five-year contract worth £71,000 per week offered
Everton have tabled a £34.3m bid for El Bilal Toure with a five-year deal worth £71,000 per week on offer to the player according to Sacha Tavolieri.
The Toffees have been linked with a move for the Mali international after a solid campaign for Almeria in the 2022/23 season, but he has also attracted interest from several other clubs.
But according to reliable Belgian journalist Tavolieri, Everton have made their move for the 21-year-old forward by tabling a mega-money bid to the La Liga side while offering him great terms too to get ahead of their competition.
“Everton put 40M€ (£34.3m) on the table for El Bilal Touré! The Toffees offered a 5-years deal for 4,3M€ (£71k p/w) gross amount per year,” he wrote on his personal Twitter account (3 July).
“Wolverhampton, Nottingham Forest & Fulham FC keen to join the fight.
“SerieA clubs interest exists but no offer has been done yet. It’s moving.”
It’s been a long summer already because there has been very minimal news about transfers with the club’s boardroom situation so volatile.
But a striker is very needed at Goodison Park this summer and after scoring seven goals and registering two assists in 21 appearances, he has shown great potential.
The likelihood is that Neal Maupay will leave while there is also plenty of interest in Ellis Simms, so the club will likely look to move one of them on before bringing in Toure if they can agree personal terms with him too.
Some reports suggested that there was a €40m (£34.3m) release clause in the player’s contract, which means Everton may not even need to negotiate with Almeria to get this deal done.
The quicker they get it over the line the better to stop other clubs jumping into the race, and Dyche can finally start building his squad ahead of the new season to avoid another relegation battle.
In other Everton news, 20-goal striker wanted at Goodison Park amid “limited budget” claims.
