You walk out of interviewing Jan Paul van Hecke at Brighton’s training ground with the urge to phone your dad, just because you realise how lucky you are that you still can.
This 24-year-old from the tiny Dutch town of Arnemuiden wishes he could. To talk football. To talk family. To talk anything. His father, Guus, died two years ago and it was crushing to lose that reassuring voice who regrettably missed seeing how his son became one of the Premier League’s most reliable defensive lynchpins.
‘He was my best friend,’ Van Hecke says. ‘When he was not there, it was hard. I was speaking to myself more. After a while, I found my way. In football, there’s a lot of mental health, so you need to always speak with somebody. But when there’s not really somebody?
‘Of course my mum was there. My brothers. It’s a different relationship, also a really good one. But I found my way. Now, I’m fine. I think I’m more adult than ever.’
Van Hecke’s father passed away when Brighton were in between managers in September 2022 as Graham Potter left and Roberto De Zerbi arrived, and today, he feels strong enough to discuss his loss in his first newspaper sit-down since arriving in England.
Brighton defender Jan Paul van Hecke has opened up on his grief after his father's death
Van Hecke was very close to his father and misses being able to discuss his proud moments
‘Before every game, I tell myself he is watching and I need to play my best game,’ continues this 6ft 2in colossus. ‘That helps me. I’m not sure it is like this, but it helps me a lot.
‘Sometimes it is tough. When you have proud moments, you’re happy but you think, “I wish he was here”. But then in the bad moments, you're like, “It always can be worse.” It’s even. It's made me stronger. It took a while but now, I am good.’
Van Hecke, or ‘JP’ as he is known to colleagues, signed for Brighton from NAC Breda in 2020 after being spotted by scouts scouring the Dutch second division.
He spent his first season on loan with Heerenveen in the Eredivisie, and his second season on loan with Blackburn in the Championship, becoming the only loanee to ever secure the club’s player of the season award. His third, he largely observed from the Brighton bench. His fourth, he broke into the team. Now into his fifth, he is partnering Lewis Dunk.
That timeline was no accident, however, as Van Hecke explains in his deep booming voice: ‘That was the plan. I'm not sure it always works like this in football but maybe for me, the plan was perfect. I remember when I was 18, they said: “First to the Dutch league, then to the Championship, then one year in the Premier League to adapt, then being a player for us regularly starting.” I was like, “Yeah, nice story bro”. How can you plan four years? But it worked.
‘That's why I always say now to young players: “Go to a club with a good plan and a good vision.” They can show you if they did it before. When I was at that age, it was with Ben White.
‘He went to lower leagues (Newport in League Two, Peterborough in League One, Leeds in the Championship) then back to Brighton and then to Arsenal. They showed me his plan.’
Now, Brighton can show starlets the plan they formulated for Van Hecke, who is the nephew of former 1978 World Cup finalist Jan Poortvilet. ‘He was humble so he didn't really show us (his memorabilia),’ Van Hecke recalls. ‘He had nice stories about other players, not about himself. The only thing he said to me was, “I played once against Johan Cruyff and he had a tough game!”’
Van Hecke revealed that Brighton gave him a timeline predicting his development
The defender gained experience on loan at Blackburn before he stepped up for Brighton
After previously playing for the Netherlands at Under-21 level, van Hecke is hoping to feature for the senior side under Ronald Koeman
Van Hecke is following in his uncle’s footsteps after being named in the Netherlands’ preliminary squad for next month’s Nations League fixtures, yet so has Matthijs de Ligt, Virgil van Dijk, Nathan Ake, Micky van de Ven, Stefan de Vrij and more. ‘I see the names,’ he says. ‘I can be in there. They are good players, but I think I am as well. Hopefully he (Ronald Koeman) picks me.’
When Brighton host Nottingham Forest at the Amex Stadium on September 22, two buses carrying 100 locals from his hometown of Arnemuiden will be in attendance. Population 5,000, this modest pocket of the Netherlands is now a hub of Seagulls supporters.
Whenever Brighton are being televised – as will be the case with Manchester United in Saturday's lunchtime serving – the town gather to watch. Van Hecke says he will try to give them a ‘great battle’ as he faces his former Netherlands Under-21 team-mate Joshua Zirkzee.
Now working with Fabian Hurzeler, the Premier League's 31-year-old manager, Van Hecke senses he is the perfect hire. For him as a ball-playing centre back, and for the team as they target European qualification this term. With the German tactician’s guidance, it is only a matter of time until Match of the Day are dedicating an analytical segment to his skillset.
‘It’s a Brighton appointment, for sure, brave,’ Van Hecke says. ‘It’s more dynamic, the way we play. Maybe for other people, it's weird (that he is so young), but for me, the manager is the “gaffer”. He's a good guy, but I know he is the boss so I will listen to him. We respect him.
‘I already knew who he was when they said his name because he was here last year a few times. He watched our games. Pascal (Gross) said he was doing really well in the second Bundesliga so I Googled him at that time and then I knew. But I didn’t know he was coming in a year later!’
Van Hecke has tried being a boss himself – on the video game Football Manager. He likes taking teams from the bottom to the top, which he did with Bradford City, going from League Two to the Premier League, and Sunderland, guiding them to the Champions League.
‘I just try to follow clubs with nice histories,’ he explains. ‘I just love football.’ Trouble is, he can no longer afford to sign himself for these smaller sides, though he tweak the settings to follow Brighton's philosophy in passing from the back. ‘I try to, but then sometimes, you're not winning games and you change it! Sometimes it's good – kick it long and let the strikers deal with it!’
Van Hecke is now working under the guidance of 31-year-old Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler
Van Hecke, or ‘JP’ as he is known to colleagues, signed for Brighton from NAC Breda in 2020
After starting off as a No 10, van Hecke eventually settled on playing as a centre-back
Dennis Bergkamp being his idol, Van Hecke started life as a No 10 and then, in his own words, he went ‘down, and down, and down’ the team. Laughing, he says: 'Then they said, “We’ve got a good goalie so you can stay at centre back!” When I was 15, sometimes I went from No 10 to centre back in the same game. It was weird.’
It helped him in a way, now that he is told the ball should never reach such dizzying heights that it comes back down with icicles on it. ‘It’s the Dutch school,’ he says. ‘When I was younger, I was not allowed to kick the ball forward. They said you need to play from the back. “Don’t do a kick and rush, otherwise you get subbed off.” Now I’m good and comfortable on the ball.’
Brighton’s supporters love Van Hecke, so much so that they have created a new chant for him. ‘Crofty (Andrew Crofts, Brighton’s assistant coach) came to me and started singing it.’ So as per their proclamations, is it true you are better than Fabio Cannavaro? ‘I'm not sure about that!’ And the best looking Dutchman they know? ‘Hopefully!’
It was being belted out of the away end at Goodison Park at full-time last Saturday, as Brighton’s 3-0 victory took them to the top of the Premier League after the opening weekend.
If only Guus was here to see how far his son has come. Van Hecke agrees with Mail Sport’s assertion that his father would be proud of him today, and if you haven't done so already, I’d give your old man a call.
Jan Paul van Hecke has been volunteering to help the Brighton Foundation, who have produced a new special video to highlight their work starring local fan and hip-hop artist Mac Perry. Visit https://bhafcfoundation.org.uk for more information.