Brighton & Hove Albion scout Bert Konterman has informed the club about FC Twente youngster Ruud Nijstad.
This is according to the man himself, Via Twenty Insights. He admitted that he has approached Brighton about the 18-year-old as he continues to impress at the Dutch club.
Nijstad is considered by many to be one of the Netherlands' most promising young talents. Some have compared him to a modern-day Gerard Piqué, praising his composure, skill with his left foot and ability to initiate attacks from defence.
He broke into Twente's first team this season, and established himself as a highly sought-after prospect in the process.
Big clubs are monitoring him
He has been the subject of intense speculation even before the summer transfer window. Barcelona reportedly made significant efforts to sign him in the January transfer window.
Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham are all keeping an eye on the defender as well. It is unlikely that these three will be the only ones watching his performances in the Premier League.
According to him, Brighton are definitely aware of him kontermann. He admitted that he had already told the Seagulls about Nijstad. The matter was put to him during an appearance on D'Osttribune.
"I really enjoyed the match against Feyenoord," He said.
“I just wrote down the ages of all the FC Twente players. It's incredible that this is a team with so much potential for the coming years.
"Ruud Nijstad was fantastic, Stav Lemkin was good, Thomas van den Belt was important, Lammers was decent, and Orjsätter is getting better and better."
"You say: If they stay together, Tijman van Wissing replied.
"I agree with that, but the point is that if you work for Brighton & Hove Albion, you also know that they have Nijstad on their radar. You probably already do."
brighton tipped
"Right, I was impressed. I told them about it," The Brighton scout replied.
"Those guys are not good enough yet for the first team (at a club like Brighton). You can buy them, but then you have to make a deal to keep them at FC Twente for two to three years."
It would not be a surprise for Brighton to approve such a transfer deal. The Seagulls have certainly not been afraid to sign young players from the Netherlands.
Matt Wiffer, Yankuba Minteh and Jan Paul van Hecke are prime examples. All three are now first team regulars for Brighton under Fabian Herzeler.
Van Hecke gives the example of how Brighton sign young players early and loan them out to develop elsewhere. The club has also signed youngsters such as Yoon Do-young, Malik Yalkouye and Ibrahim Osman, who are currently on loan.
A similar deal would make a lot of sense for Nijstad, especially as competition looks to be increasing.
