Football
Exclusive: Brighton Weigh Up Future of Long-Serving Captain Lewis Dunk
Brighton and Hove Albion are considering offering long-serving defender Lewis Dunk a one-year contract extension. With over 500 career appearances and 17 seasons with the club, Dunk's future hangs in the balance. The 33-year-old remains a regular starter and valuable asset to the team, but the club is also looking to sign young players for the future. Veteran striker Danny Welbeck is also set to be offered a contract extension.
Crystal Palace v Brighton & Hove Albion - Premier League by Sebastian Frej | Getty Images
Brighton and Hove Albion are weighing up whether to offer long-serving defender Lewis Dunk a one-year contract extension, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
The former England centre-back is one of seven Seagulls players out of contract next summer, and the Albion legend’s future currently hangs in the balance.
With over 500 career appearances under his belt and now in an incredible 17th season with the club, Dunk has nothing to prove.
But the experienced defender is determined to earn himself a new deal and extend his distinguished career, the last nine of which have been spent playing in the Premier League.
And after years of loyal service, Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has recently gone on record to say he will give the club’s long-serving captain every chance to continue his loyal association with the club.
However, Dunk celebrates his 34th birthday on Friday this week and is realistic that he is unlikely to have many more years left in the Premier League.
REGULAR STARTER
Dunk remains a regular starter under German boss Hurzeler this season and his experience at the top-level, and at international level, is understandably a valuable asset to the team.
The defender has started every one of Brighton’s 11 Premier League games this season and helped the Seagulls keep two cleansheets as they sit 11th in the standings after a bright start to the campaign which has resulted in fine victories over Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Leeds United respectively.
At 33, Brighton believe Dunk still has plenty of offer, but our sources also understand the chance to sign a new young player and build for the future is also at the forefront of Hurzeler’s mind moving forward.
Brighton may also be edging towards offering Dunk a new deal, with the club potentially needing to cash in on highly rated centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke, who has attracted strong interest from Liverpool, Newcastle and Tottenham.
Veteran striker Danny Welbeck is also out of contract next summer and, as exclusively revealed by SportsBoom earlier this year, is set to be offered a contract extension ahead of next season.
Teammates Solly March, Adam Webster, James Milner, Joel Veltman and Jason Steele are all of contract in the summer, so the Seagulls have seven players to sort in the coming months before they can leave as free transfers.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.