Sources: Club hijack Middlesbrough deal for Van Bergen as fee agreed
Stade Reims have hijacked the Middlesbrough deal for winger Mitchell Van Bergen, Football Insider can exclusively reveal.
The 21-year-old has been on the verge of joining the Championship side after they submitted a second bid for him.
But a recruitment source has told Football Insider that French outfit Stade Reims have ambushed Boro and now agreed a fee for Van Bergen with his club Heerenveen.
It is believed that the player’s number one choice is to join the Ligue 1 team.
This site revealed on 21 August that Boro had agreed a fee with Heerenveen and booked the winger in for a medical.
That was their second bid for the Netherlands Under-21 international, who is out of contract at the end of the season.
Van Bergen was an unused substitute in Heerenveen's 3-2 win over RKC Waalwijk on Saturday.
The wide man, who signed from Vitesse in 2018, can operate on both flanks but is primarily a right-sided player.
He would have become Boro's tenth signing of the summer transfer window as Neil Warnock has impressively built up his garrison.
The headline arrival has been Argentine midfielder Martin Payero who joined from Banfield in a reported £6million deal.
Football Insider revealed on 17 August that Middlesbrough are also in advanced talks to sign Sporting Lisbon striker Andraz Sporar.
Stade Reims' only deals of the window so far have been the free-transfer captures of goalkeeper Nicolas Penneteau and defender Andreaw Gravillon.