'It's a good deal for Brighton' - Aspinall on Struijk signingpublished at 18:14 BST 2 July
18:14 BST 2 July
Image source, Getty Images
Former Brighton striker Warren Aspinall thinks Albion signing defender Pascal Struijk from Leeds United is a "good deal" for the club.
The 26-year-old centre-back's transfer, for a fee understood to be about £20m, was confirmed on Tuesday
On the Albion Unlimited podcast, Aspinall said: "He is a good age. Eight and a half years at Leeds, got promotion, left-footed centre-back, played 196 [games] across all competitions, 34 appearances last season. He was a regular in the side and can play in a five or a three, or just as a normal centre-back.
"I think he'll be a squad player. Don't forget we've lost Webster, so he'll be fighting for that left-hand-side spot with Boscagli.
"It's the going rate in the Premier League now for a squad player. I think it's a good deal for Brighton."
Penrith: Absolutely ridiculous price for untried 19-year-old who Roberto de Zerbi clearly does not rate. Better off going for John Stones on a free.
Dawid: We sell arguably our best player to Tottenham for £52m and then pay them up to £50m for an untried and untested player who was not good enough to get into one of the leakiest defences in the Premier League last year. I hope our scouts have seen something which is certainly not obvious to me.
Gez: I can't help feeling that we are paying over the odds when you see what Spurs paid for Jan Paul van Hecke.
Fran: Seems a strange signing. We already have Diego Coppola and Olivier Boscagli and Pascal Struijk. At that price surely we are not looking to send him out on loan! Even at 19, he will be looking to play on a regular basis and if not why bother signing him? Hopefully not just to make up squad members. Bring in players with experience who will be ready to play.
Martin: Effectively, a swap with Van Hecke plus £6m. One has never played in the Premier League, the other a proven quality Premier League performer. Feels like Spurs may have rinsed Brighton here but Brighton have a good track record of buying unproven talent, making them good and then selling them on for profit. Has worked well with other low-cost players but will be tough to do this when buying for £46m. Time will tell.
James: Unproven although, we seem to be good at finding and developing gems. £50m shows that Brighton are finally looking to splash a bit of cash, and I think we've realised that in order to compete at the very top we need to invest.
Svoboda 'adds competition' to Seagulls defence - Hurzelerpublished at 11:53 BST 2 July
11:53 BST 2 July
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Brighton have bolstered their defence with the signing of Michael Svoboda from Serie B champions Venezia on a four-year contract.
Svoboda, 27, is at the World Cup with Austria having made his international debut in October 2024.
Albion boss Fabian Hurzeler said: "Michael has enjoyed a fantastic season with Venezia, captaining them to the league title.
"He has a number of attributes we believe will see him adapt well to how we play, both in and out of possession.
"He also adds competition to an area we are looking to strengthen and with a number of clubs pursuing him this summer, I am very happy that he's decided to come to Brighton."
What do you make of Svoboda? Will he be a useful addition to the Brighton squad or is he a risk with no Premier League experience?
Brighton to land Vuskovicpublished at 08:23 BST 2 July
08:23 BST 2 July
Brighton have agreed a club record £46m deal with Tottenham Hotspur for Croatia defender Luka Vuskovic.
Brighton had two bids for Vuskovic turned down last month.
However, they have now reached an agreement over a transfer that is also subject to potential additional payments that could take the overall fee to £50m.
The 19-year-old will have a medical when Croatia's World Cup campaign is over.
They play Portugal in a last-32 tie in the early hours of Friday morning UK time.
Born in Split, Vuskovic came through the academy at local club Hajduk, becoming the youngest player to feature in Croatia's top flight when he was just 16 – and going on to become his club's youngest goalscorer.
He agreed a deal with Tottenham in September 2023 that saw him join the club in 2025.
Although he is yet to make his Spurs debut, Vuskovic made 30 appearances on loan with German club Hamburg last season, scoring six goals in the Bundesliga, and is now one of the most highly rated young central defenders in Europe.
