Verbruggen on 'great relationship' with club and Dutch team-mate Van Hecke
· Yahoo Sports
Bart Verbruggen says he has a "great relationship" with Brighton team-mate Jan Paul van Hecke, who he could be set to line up alongside at the World Cup with the Netherlands.
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Van Hecke has been the subject of interest from Tottenham but the Seagulls centre-back will be focused on trying to make the starting XI for his national side in a defensive unit that is packed with world-class talent, including Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk and Spurs' Micky van de Ven.
Speaking about his relationship with Van Hecke on the Albion Unlimited podcast, Brighton goalkeeper Verbruggen said: "For me, we played together for so long, I know already what he's going to do before he does it and it goes the same the other way around.
"I have a great relationship with him on the pitch, but I have a great relationship with all the players in the Netherlands [team]. And I don't just say that to be good now in the interview, it is really true. I feel like I know what they want, they know what I want and how we can help each other best, and hopefully we can show that in the World Cup."
Verbruggen also touched on how much talent this current Dutch side have at their disposal as they look to challenge for the latter stages of this summer's tournament.
"It makes my life a bit easier that's for sure," he added. "As a competitor, you always want to play against the best players, but you also want to beat them, and in order to beat them you need the best on your side as well.
"I have the big privilege to play with the defensive line that I think is up there with the best in the world, and you can feel it, and you build a relationship together."
Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds here