Sometimes in life, you just have to know when you are beaten, and football, that is no different.

It seems however that no one told that to ADO Den Haag manager Jeffrey van As, who recently told Dutch magazine Voetbal International that his side are determined to keep their 24-year-old midfielder Sheraldo Becker.

That is despite Becker apparently attracting interest from no fewer than five Championship sides, with The Daily Mirror (print edition, 19/05,p70), naming Championship play-off finalists Derby, along with Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday and Swansea as the quintet that are interested in bringing Becker across the channel to English football.

If that interest in Becker materialises into offers, it is hard to see van As' wish of keeping the midfielder at Den Haag coming true.

Becker is currently out of contract in Holland, meaning those interested could simply make an approach to the player themselves should they wish to do so, and you feel the rewards on offer would be too good for him to refuse.

Although Den Haag are already a well established top flight side in the Netherlands, the footballing monopoly in the country held by its big three of Ajax; PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord, means that Becker is unlikely to ever get the chance to experience silverware while he is at Den Haag.

A move to England with one of the five sides interested in him however, could give Becker the opportunity taste the thrill of promotion, with the prize in the most lucrative and arguably best known, best followed league in the World on offer - though if Derby get their wish on Monday, they may well be a Premier League club by the time Becker makes his move to England.

While Den Haag themselves apparently intend to offer a fresh contract to Becker in a bid to keep him in the Netherlands, the size of the likes of Leeds; Middlesbrough and Derby mean that financially too, the package on offer to Becker in England will also surely be an attractive one, making it even harder for Den Haag to keep one of their prized assets.

It is never easy for a club to lose a key player, but given how much they clearly want to keep Becker, it appears as though Den Haag's loss, is set to be the Championship's gain.