Donny van de Beek has revealed that fellow countryman Steven Bergwijn tried to steer him towards Tottenham before he settled on his move to Manchester United earlier this month.

The Red Devils fought off several other clubs to capture the signature of the highly rated 23-year-old from Ajax, who arrived at the Theatre of Dreams on Wednesday on a five-year deal with the option of an additional season.

Van de Beek’s signing has reaffirmed United’s intent to challenge for top honours at home in domestic competition and abroad in the Champions League under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this season, as the Norwegian continues to rebuild his squad following on from a third-place finish in the Premier League last term.

Having fired for Ajax throughout the 2019-20 campaign, the midfielder had been linked with a move to Real Madrid as well as garnering interest from Arsenal, though a switch to the former fell through with the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

Now, Van de Beek has also revealed that a move to Tottenham was theoretically mooted at one point – mostly because his Dutch teammate Bergwijn tried to lure him there instead – while adding that a discussion with his agent just before his move convinced him to make the switch away from Ajax.

“Steven Bergwijn texted me to see whether I would play for Spurs,” he told Algemeen Dagblad. “But I chose United.

“I felt ready for the next step. This was the time to go. That is why I was on the phone with my agent last weekend. In the end, there was an agreement.”

Van de Beek previously opened up on the role that former United shotstopper Edwin van der Sar played in the switch, with the latter helping to broker the deal in his current position as chief executive officer of Ajax, as well as the discussions that the pair held about United’s history.

“We talked about football things, about the club and I always make decisions about my feelings and my feelings were directly good with everything,” he stated. “That was for me an important thing.”