18-year-old Swedish wonderkid’s agent used Barcelona to get a better offer from Tottenham

Barcelona were dealt with great disappointment on transfer deadline day when their top target Lucas Bergvall made a drastic U-turn to join Tottenham Hotspur.

Regarded as one of the most sought-after young midfield talents in Europe, Bergvall was very close to joining Barcelona. The player had even visited the club’s training camp and was on the verge of sealing an agreement.

But on transfer deadline day, Bergvall joined Spurs on a deal worth €10 million. It was later revealed that Djurgardens were secretly in talks with Tottenham all along.

How Bergvall’s agents used Barcelona as bait

Spanish news outlet Diario SPORT has revealed a comprehensive report on how Bergvall’s move to Spurs was engineered by his agents, with Barcelona being used as an ideal bait.

The report points out that Bergvall’s agents used Barcelona in order to obtain a higher offer from Tottenham.

Upon receiving it, they slowly started to put off Barça, first by demanding a higher commission than agents usually take.

The agents then asked for a higher salary for the 17-year-old. Soon after, Deco got the hang of their plan and did not entertain any proposals from the agents.

The player eventually joined Spurs for a fee of €10 million – the same value as Barcelona were willing to offer, but only for the player. The club did not opt to pay any additional commission to agents nor a higher salary for the player.

Diario SPORT further points out that Bergvall may have wanted a move to Barcelona. But it was his agents that helped him engineer a move to Spurs, and hand him a better package overall.