Football
Tom Marshall, Mexico correspondent 6y

Club America closing in on PSV Eindhoven striker Luuk de Jong

Club America coach Miguel Herrera is hoping to lure PSV Eindhoven striker Luuk de Jong to Liga MX and hopes he can have a bigger impact on the league than Andre-Pierre Gignac has had at Tigres.

De Jong was linked to Club America on Jan. 1 by Telesport and Herrera said in an interview with ESPN on Tuesday evening that the 27-year-old striker is Las Aguilas' priority signing this transfer window.

"De Jong is the [player] that most interests us," former Mexico national team coach Herrera said. "We've followed it up and [the opportunity] has been laid on the table."

Herrera added that De Jong's goal ratio is around one every two games, something Club America has missed, according to the coach.

"I'm looking for a player with a bigger name than Gignac," Herrera said.

Gignac arrived in Mexico as a free agent from Marseille in 2015 and has gone on to score over 50 goals and help Tigres to three Liga MX titles.

The potential De Jong transfer, reported by Telesport to be around €7 million, appears to be coming together, with the player said to be interested in a move to Liga MX.

Dutch coach Hans Westerhof worked in Mexico for over 10 years and told ESPN that he had been in contact with De Jong, who has been in and out the Netherlands national team since 2011.

"Luuk called me and told me about Club America, he asked me things about Mexico, about Club America and I told him it is a great team, the best in Mexico alongside Chivas and Pachuca," Westerhof said. "I told him they played very attacking football and that it was good for him. He's interested in Club America."

De Jong endured a difficult spell at Newcastle United in 2014. The signing of 18-year-old striker Maximiliano Romero late last month is also likely to curtail his playing time further if he were to stay at the Eredivisie club.

De Jong is not the only European forward of interest to Club America, with ESPN Mexico reporting that Club America is still in the hunt for Antalyaspor's French forward Jeremy Menez.

Las Aguilas are reportedly also trying to sell Colombian forward Darwin Quintero and Argentine Silvio Romero, according to the same report.

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