Tottenham forward Steven Bergwijn has revealed José Mourinho phoned him ahead of his move to the club.
Bergwijn joined Spurs in a £27m deal from PSV Eindhoven in January, bringing an end to eight years at the Dutch club.
The forward was an express wish for manager Mourinho, who was desperate to add further firepower to Tottenham’s forward line having lost Harry Kane to injury for much of the campaign.
Bergwijn made an immediate impact at the club, scoring a superb solo effort in a 2-0 win over Manchester City on his debut.
Indeed, the Dutchman has settled in well to life in England, and he says that is solely down to Mourinho’s welcoming nature.
“The image people have of him is exactly what he wants. That makes him unique, I think,” he told Voetbal International.
“Mourinho just wants to win; he radiates that in everything. At the same time, he loves his players.
“Before the transfer was completed, he called me, we Facetimed.
“He wanted to know everything about me and of course when I would come and when I would train for the first time.
“Mourinho has a lot of confidence in me, which is partly why I felt at home so quickly, I think.”
It’s been a period of quick adaptation for Bergwijn, who has had to adjust to a completely different style of football than what he was accustomed to in the Netherlands.
That is certainly the case under Mourinho, who has never hidden his lack of desire to play the attractive, open style football that is now popular in the game.
Indeed, his style is the complete opposite, and according to Bergwijn, it’s been made clear that winning is more important than style.
“All defenders in England are incredibly strong. And in the Netherlands almost every club wants to build from the back,” he added.
“Not here. With some teams, the ball is simply rammed forward, and they watch the strikers and midfielders fight it out.
“It is different with us; we want to build up with Tottenham and make the game from ball possession.
“But if that doesn’t work, then we won’t keep trying endlessly. Then it must be different. Getting three points is much more important here than the way you play football.”
