Willem II are closing in on a return for Tonny Vilhena to the VriendenLoterij Eredivisie, Voetbal International reports. The 31-year-old midfielder still has one year left on his contract at Panathinaikos, but he is no longer part of the Greek top club's plans and now looks set to put pen to paper in Tilburg in the short term. Transfer journalist Mounir Boualin adds that Vilhena has already reached a verbal agreement with Willem II.
Vilhena has been weighing up a return to the Netherlands for some time. Earlier this summer, SC Cambuur tried to bring him to Leeuwarden, but that move is now off the table.
Insiders say the 15-cap Netherlands international will soon join Willem II. The promoted side want more reinforcements in the final week of the transfer window and see Vilhena as a signing who brings both quality and a considerable amount of experience.
In midfield, Willem II have already largely filled two positions with Calvin Twigt and Kasper Boogaard. Twigt returned from Go Ahead Eagles and is viewed as a holding midfielder, while Boogaard arrived on loan from AZ and is being used as a box-to-box midfielder.
Behind the striker, Uriël van Aalst got the nod in the first two league matches. The young midfielder is seen within the club as a major talent, but there are doubts over whether a regular starting place in the Eredivisie is not coming too soon for him at this stage.
By signing Vilhena, Willem II would add a player who knows the Dutch league extremely well. The midfielder came through Feyenoord's academy and grew into an influential figure in the first team at De Kuip.
Vilhena eventually played more than 200 official matches for Feyenoord before leaving for FK Krasnodar in 2019. He then went on to play for Espanyol, Salernitana, Alanyaspor and Panathinaikos in succession.
At Panathinaikos, Vilhena has now reached a dead end. Last season, the experienced midfielder made only three appearances, which has made a departure this summer the obvious outcome for all parties.