Fulham make £15m move for Ajax’s Calvin Bassey as Marco Silva looks to strengthen his centre-back options ahead of the new season

• Fulham have made a £15m approach for Ajax defender Calvin Bassey 
• The 23-year-old brings European experience from spells with Rangers and Ajax 
• Bassey can play as a centre-back or a left-back and has ten Nigeria caps  

• Fulham have made a £15m bid for Ajax centre-back Calvin Bassey.

  The 23-year-old has four years left on his deal at the Johan Cruyff Arena after joining from Rangers last summer.

  Marco Silva is seeking to bolster his defensive options as the Cottagers look to build on a top-half finish on their return to the Premier League.

• Despite his relative youth, Bassey brings strong experience and can play in the centre or on the left flank of a defence.

  The Leicester academy graduate spent two years at Rangers, where he was an integral part of Steven Gerrard’s Scottish Premiership-winning team and the run to the Europa League final under Gerrard and Giovanni van Bronckhorst.

• Fulham have made a £15m bid for Ajax’s talented 23-year-old defender Calvin Bassey

  Bassey honed his craft for two years at Rangers, going on a deep Europa League run in 2021/22

  On the back of his time in Glasgow, he became the club’s most expensive sale ever in a £19m switch to Ajax.

  There, he formed a partnership with Jurrien Timber, Arsenal’s new man, in their third-placed Eredivisie finish.

  

  On the international stage, he has made ten appearances for Nigeria. He was also eligible to play for England or Italy.

  Bassey is known for being a fun-loving character and at the start of last season joked that the FIFA video game is ‘disrespectful’ after they only gave him a 74 rating.

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  Fulham: Bid made for Calvin Bassey

  The London club have reportedly made their first proposal for the Ajax defender…

  Fulham have made their first bid for Ajax defender Calvin Bassey, according to reports. The former Rangers starlet has also attracted interest from Brighton & Hove Albion, and is under contract in Amsterdam until 2027.

  What’s the latest on Fulham signing Calvin Bassey?

  Swapping Rangers for Ajax last summer in a deal worth a reported £19.6m, Bassey could be on the move just a year later. Fulham have made a first bid of £15m for the 23-year-old, according to David Ornstein of The Athletic, with Ajax yet to respond.

  Given that they paid just under £20m for his signature last summer, unless the Dutch side are willing to take a loss on their initial investment, then it seems unlikely that they’d accept the Cottagers’ opening bid.

  Bassey made 25 appearances in the Eredivisie last season, as Ajax finished third in a campaign to forget, and their first since losing Erik ten Hag to Manchester United last summer.

  Fulham, meanwhile, enjoyed a season to remember, finishing in the Premier League’s top half, and spending the majority of the campaign chasing the European places.

  Marco Silva will hope to welcome further additions this summer – perhaps including Bassey – as he looks to guide his side to even better things come August.

  Should Fulham sign Calvin Bassey?

  There’s a reason why Ajax paid close to £20m for Bassey just last summer, and the quality that warranted such a move doesn’t disappear in the space of 12 months despite their whole squad having a down year.

  The stats show that the former Rangers man would instantly make an impact in Silva’s backline. With the way the manager likes his side to play, asking them to build from the back, Bassey would slot straight in.

  According to FBref, the Nigerian made 5.62 progressive passes per 90 – more than both Tim Ream and Issa Diop – perhaps allowing Fulham to unlock teams even better than last season.

  

  Meanwhile, Bassey also lost fewer challenges, and won more tackles per 90 than the current Fulham centre-backs. The more that the Ajax man is looked at, the more it seems like the Cottagers simply have to seal a deal this summer.

  Full of praise for Bassey, Don Hutchinson told the BBC after Rangers’ Europa League heartbreak against Eintracht Frankfurt: “There were so many good performances. Bassey was a giant, a superstar, incredible performance.”

  It came as no surprise that Ajax made their move for the defender shortly after his display which, in truth, deserved a piece of silverware, rather than heartbreak.

  It would be a sign of intent if Fulham managed to secure the arrival of Bassey this summer then, and with a long transfer window ahead still, anything could yet happen. Silva will simply be hoping to have a squad ready and able to push the Premier League’s top six all the way again.

  In their second season back in England’s top flight, Fulham could push on even further, especially if Bassey makes the move to the London club in the coming month.