Boro officials have held a series of discussions over Jones, with significant progress having been made over the weekend.
The 27-year-old has been in Turkey with the rest of Hull’s first-team squad, but was withdrawn from training at the end of last week and was not involved in the Tigers’ most recent pre-season game against Kasimpasa at the weekend.
Jones, who is effectively in the final two years of his contract at the MKM Stadium as Hull have the option of extending his current deal by another 12 months, is close to joining Boro in a deal that is understood to be financially attractive to the Teessiders.
Hull’s fraught financial position means Boro have been in a strong negotiating position, and while it has been reported that the final package for Jones could be worth around £3m, it is understood the initial up-front payment for the defender is set to be well below that figure.
Jones joined Hull from Southampton in September 2020 and has spent the last five seasons with the Tigers. He was a key member of the Hull side that won promotion from League One in the 2020-21 season and has made at least 40 league appearances in each of the last three Championship campaigns.
His arrival will significantly strengthen Boro’s central-defensive ranks, which were diminished when Matt Clarke left to join Derby County in January.
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The Teessiders’ options at the back would reduce further if van den Berg was to leave, but while the Dutch youngster has been the subject of mounting interest in the last few days, the Boro hierarchy are adamant he will only be allowed to leave if their demands are met.
Feyenoord made formal contact earlier in the week and are understood to have tabled an initial offer of around €10m for van den Berg’s services.
That offer falls well below Boro’s valuation of the 21-year-old, who was a key part of the Netherlands team at the recent European Under-21 Championships.
Van den Berg joined Boro for a cut-price fee of around €300,000 when he moved from his homeland in the summer of 2023, although his previous club, PEC Zwolle, are understood to have negotiated a sell-on fee at the time that will entitle them to a proportion of any profit received from the defender’s sale this summer.
In the last two seasons, van den Berg has established himself as one of the most highly-rated defenders in the Championship, with his performances on the international stage having enhanced his reputation even more.
The Boro hierarchy are adamant that must be reflected in any potential deal that is agreed for his departure, with Feyenoord having been told they will have to increase their initial offer significantly to broker an agreement.
Boro are also keen to include a significant sell-on clause of their own in any potential deal for van den Berg, with a similar agreement in the deal that took Morgan Rogers to Aston Villa already having proved extremely lucrative.
Van den Berg, who was the subject of interest from German club Eintracht Frankfurt earlier this summer, is understood to be interested in a potential move to Feyenoord. As was the case when he opted to join Boro ahead of a number of major European clubs, the defender will only agree to a move if he feels it offers him a realistic chance of regular first-team football.
