Burnley pulled out of a potential deal for long-term target Bart Verbruggen as they ‘did not want to participate in a bidding war’ with Brighton for him.
That’s according to Het Nieuwsblad, who say that Burnley had revived their interest in the highly rated goalkeeper after failing to get him last summer.
Vincent Kompany was believed to be chasing Verbruggen, whom he worked with at Anderlecht, for much of the previous summer transfer window as he built his squad ahead of his first season in charge at Burnley.
However, a deal was never struck as Anderlecht consistently refused to do business and the Clarets eventually turned their attention elsewhere.
Verbruggen has since established himself as the number one at the club and that has led to increased speculation about his future in Belgium.
It has long been felt he’ll be on his way this summer and that is the case, with Het Nieuwsblad reporting that a deal is now in place for him to join Brighton for €20m.
He’s due for a medical with the Seagulls soon before finalising the deal and becoming the most expensive goalkeeper ever in Belgium.
Roberto de Zerbi’s side had been facing competition from Burnley, who were also ‘interested’ once again, but it’s explained that they ultimately didn’t want to end up in a bidding war with their Premier League counterparts once they showed up in the fight.
