Brentford have secured a deal to sign Dutch defender Pim Balkestein from Ipswich on loan.
Dutch defender joins on loan
Brentford have secured a deal to sign Dutch defender Pim Balkestein from Ipswich during the summer on loan.
The 23-year-old, who made 14 appearances for the Bees in a loan spell this season, had agreed to join the side, with both clubs agreeing a fee for his services should he impress in March.
Despite a deal being reached, Brentford boss Andy Scott revealed that Balkestein was still pursuing a permanent move to a championship club, although he was happy to move to Scott's side on loan for the current time.
"When Pim came here we agreed a fee with Ipswich because he was under 24, with the view that if we did sign him the deal between clubs had already been completed," Scott told
skysports.com
"However, clearly Pim wanted to and still does want to leave the door open for other Championship clubs to come in for him.
"We are staying in close contact with him though and remain optimistic that we can make him a permanent member of our squad."
The Bees boss was also keen to sign Peterborough midfielder Toumani Diagouraga, who also made a real impression during his loan spell.
However, despite the interest, Posh's valuation of the player has firmly priced him out of a permanent move for the 22-year-old
"We've spoken to Peterborough about Toumani, but their valuation of him is considerably higher than ours, so that deal looks dead," he sadded.
