Twente want £16m for De Jong

By ESPN staff
FC Twente chairman Joop Munsterman has interested clubs that they will have to pay £16 million for striker Luuk de Jong - and the player has slammed the inflated price tag and the club's conduct.

AssociatedLuuk de Jong is said to have been impressed by Newcastle

Newcastle's heralded scouting network highlighted De Jong as a star of the future and the club have been working on a deal with their Dutch counterparts.
Twente are reluctant to sell, with coach Steve McClaren feeling De Jong, 21, would be better served by spending one more year in the Eredivisie before moving on. But McClaren is aware of the need to balance the books and has suggested the player has his price.
McClaren did not state that price, but his chairman has. Munsterman has revealed to Newcastle and rival suitors Borussia Monchengladbach what it will take to prise their 25-goal forward out of the club.
"For £12m, De Jong will not leave," Munsterman said. "But £16m would be an incredible amount."
Newcastle have had a £12m bid rebuffed but are expected to go back in again in the coming days.
De Jong has reacted with amazement that such a large fee has been placed on his head as both Newcastle and Bundesliga outfit Borussia Monchengladbach track him. He is also prepared to waive the 20% of the transfer fee he is due within his Twente contract.
"I fell off my chair when I heard the words of Munsterman," he said. "There have been, in recent months, eight clubs from five countries interested in me. A number of those clubs approached us directly and at least three to Aldo van der Laan [Member of the Supervisory Board of Twente]," he told Voetbal International.
"I also heard Munsterman say that a transfer is negotiable only at €20 million. This amount is inconsistent with the talks that were held this week between Monchengladbach, my agent Louis Laros and my father.
"I notified the club that I fully waive the 20%, but now Twente said that they also do not want this. I find this practice incredible. I thought this was a decent club to play for.
"The president said that players should get a fair chance, but the reality is different. I had heard from other players that the board of Twente negotiates in an indecent manner, and I never believed it. Now, unfortunately I have experienced this myself.
"Gladbach will be a new level for me and it's where I want to develop further, in view of the Dutch national team. All my competitors for the striker position in Oranje play in foreign clubs in strong leagues. "I hope Twente still honours the commitment. The club bought me three seasons ago for €900,000 and now in three years, it is €14 million to get me. Such an amount is unprecedented in Netherlands."