Donny van de Beek has told Dutch press that his international team-mate Steven Bergwijn tried to convince him to join him at Tottenham, prior to his transfer to Manchester United.
Spurs were one of many clubs heavily linked with the Dutchman, but United came out of the blue and made a deal happen. Within 24 hours of the first substantial reporting on their interest, the Red Devils' decisiveness paid off, and a deal was announced.
That would have come to the disappointment of Bergwijn, however, who joined José Mourinho's team in January, and wanted Van de Beek to join him in North London.
He admits everything was 'closed', but fell through when Real could not clear sufficient space in the squad for his arrival.
“Everything was closed with Real Madrid and the clubs also had an agreement, but for some reason it did not materialise,” he said. .“Players who were going to leave the team stayed and Madrid backed down."
Van de Beek will wear the number 34 shirt at Old Trafford when the Premier League season kicks off next weekend. He joins Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Scott McTominay and Nemanja Matic in an impressive looking midfield.
Source : 90min