ne year ago, a Dutch second division club named Almere City, were having an average season, but there was one bright light in their season, a player named Vincent Janssen. A striker who eased through the academy of Dutch giants Feyenoord Rotterdam, but wasn’t considered good enough to play for the first team. The starlet scored 19 goals in 34 games in his second season at Almere City and got the chance to prove himself in the Eredivisie.
Following his excellent season for Almere City, AZ Alkmaar signed Janssen last summer. At first, none of the AZ Alkmaar fans knew about the 21-year-old, but it took him little time to win their hearts. His work rate won the crowd over, but he still hadn’t scored a goal for his new club. It took him quite a while to pick up his first Eredivisie goal. It eventually came in a game versus FC Twente, he scored two goals in a 3-1 win for his club and after that, there was no stopping him.Building on the foundations of his first goal – which he waited for nine games – he netted five goals in 14 games while also providing two assists in the lead up to the winter break.
After the winter break, he blossomed from an average striker into arguably the best in the Eredivisie. He scored 21 goals and provided two assists in 18 games, and the comparisons with Dutch legend Ruud van Nistelrooy were soon made. Janssen’s best game of the season was against his former club Feyenoord, where he scored a hattrick, a bittersweet pill to swallow for the team that released him as a youth player. With the Eredivisie now over, Janssen has helped Alkmaar finish fourth, one spot below Feyenoord, and finished as the Eredivie’s top scorer with 27.
As stated before, the comparisons were made with Dutch and Manchester United legend Ruud van Nistelrooy. Most of his goals are from inside the box highlighting his poacher instincts and he is excellent at holding the ball. His strength along with his vision and his ability to create chances for both himself and his teammates, make him one of the biggest prospects in Dutch football.
Due to his outstanding season, Janssen earned a call up to play for Holland against England at Wembley. Although some critics argued, playing his full debut in front of 90,000 at Wembley was too much, Janssen proved the critics wrong.
After a rough start, in which his team clearly struggled, England scored the first goal through Leicester revelation Jamie Vardy. After a Danny Rose handball, the referee pointed to the spot and the Dutch team was awarded a penalty, to which Janssen scored.
In the 76th minute, the Dutch were on the break with fast ball circulation. Janssen received the ball and won a very important duel against Phil Jagielka as he was suddenly through on goal, he gave a perfect pass through the legs of a couple England defenders, which was then finished by PSV forward Luciano Narsingh.
Vincent Janssen is a typical number nine. He’s technical, has good pace, will make runs, and most crucially, has a poacher’s instinct. Although he’s only 21, and only just completed his first season in the Eredivisie, Janssen could yet attract serious interest from Arsenal, if not other top clubs around Europe.
YouTube: VINCENT JANSSEN | Goals, Skills, Assists | AZ | 2015/2016 (HD)
