Antonio Conte makes compelling statement about Steven Bergwijn, showing he wants to keep him at Spurs

Antonio Conte told his pre-Chelsea press conference on Tuesday – according to Football London – that Tottenham don’t have another player like Steven Bergwijn. The Dutch runner-up is a topic of interest to Newcastle and Ajax.

Bergwijn, 24, has not started regularly for Tottenham since Conte arrived as manager. Small jokes led to a stop-start spell led by the Italian leader. He has missed the last four games with a calf problem.

But when it was appropriate, Conte used the former PSV player – bringing him on as a substitute in three Premier League games. He also caught Bergwijn himself in the Carabao Cup quarter-final win over West Ham – scoring one goal and assisting another.

Sky Sports Report that Tottenham have turned down a £15m offer for Bergwijn from Ajax, with negotiations ongoing. 90Min said Newcastle want him on loan. But Conte thinks Tottenham can better keep him.

“He knows very well what I think of him. I consider him a player who can play all three roles as No. 9 and No. 10. During his time at Tottenham, he was injured for a long time.

“I showed him that when he was healthy, I gave him a chance. He is very close to returning. He’s a player with different characteristics from Harry, Son and Moura, he’s a player we don’t have in our squad.”

Conte on Bergwijn: Tottenham boss ignores star?

In fact, Tottenham will not want to loan Bergwijn. He is more than useful to the North Londoners when it comes to providing support to Harry Kane, Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min – especially with the player currently out injured.

So unless the asking price is met, Bergwijn doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere. Tottenham will hardly want to lose attack, meaning they will be looking for a fee close to his £27m.

But Conte seems to trust the Dutchman a lot. He is confident he is yet to see the best of Bergwijn, due to injury. To say that the Spurs have no one like Bergwijn suggests that he wants to keep him.

In other news, Villarreal boss Unai Emery watches £12m Arsenal player