Up and Coming Talent/Pedobear Thread

Senatore_M84 · Sep 18, 2011

How much do you think he'd cost ACM4E?

I don't think he's super expensive, is he?

acmilan4ever · Sep 20, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
How much do you think he'd cost ACM4E?

I don't think he's super expensive, is he?

He has a contract till 2014 and given Basel's level, dont think he will stay much longer. Soon he will pine for better football. I'd currently value him at about 8 to 10m but a few goals/assist/good performances in the UCL and Basel will start getting greedy :lol:

On a side note, Bundesliga could be favs to snatch him, his agents have a host of players/employers in the Bundesliga and specially at Leverkusen. Pretty sure that some German clubs have made an approach already. I know Hamburg and Bayern have been interested.

Also, his current Basel coach [Fink] is a Werden Bremen legend and current NT coach, Hitzfeld, has had successful spells as a manager and DS at Dortmund and Bayern IIRC.

If all these sit and advise him then he could easily join Bayern/Dortmund...Difficult to see him in Italy, the advice of his NT teammates would be very important.

Jivara · Oct 24, 2011

Judging from u-20 WC, the player that caught my attention the most was Nelson Oliveira, who I think has the potential to be as big as C.Ronaldo for portugal in the future.

I also liked Danilo, who is 'Pele's partner in midfield.

Then you have Lacazette from France, who I spotted in the Emirates cup for Lyon, he was very dangerous and can play all across the frontline, but his recent outings for Lyon have not been very special but that can be down to only a few minutes per game.

acmilan4ever · Oct 27, 2011

Partizan teenage striker Lazar Markovic,The 17-year-old Serbian has been compared to Montenegro's Steven Jovetic, has admitted he wants to play for Andre Villas-Boas' Chelsea in the future: "Chelsea is the club that I love the most, of course after Partizan.I would love to play there. I believe that the Premier League is the best football and that's the type of league which suits me."

******************

Fiorentina have been hot on the heels of this kid but so have Chelsea and I guess we all can see which he prefers. Milan should be poaching kids like these.

Senatore_M84 · Oct 27, 2011

acmilan4ever said:
Partizan teenage striker Lazar Markovic,The 17-year-old Serbian has been compared to Montenegro's Steven Jovetic, has admitted he wants to play for Andre Villas-Boas' Chelsea in the future: "Chelsea is the club that I love the most, of course after Partizan.I would love to play there. I believe that the Premier League is the best football and that's the type of league which suits me."

******************

Fiorentina have been hot on the heels of this kid but so have Chelsea and I guess we all can see which he prefers. Milan should be poaching kids like these.

Well, Jovetic was a lot stronger than him at his age not to mention 183cm so i don't think it's a hair comparison. But yeah big talent.

It irks me why milan have been neglecting that region when two of biggest stars ever from the balkans Boban and Savicevic are milan legends.

laxman · Oct 27, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
Well, Jovetic was a lot stronger than him at his age not to mention 183cm so i don't think it's a hair comparison. But yeah big talent.

It irks me why milan have been neglecting that region when two of biggest stars ever from the balkans Boban and Savicevic are milan legends.

i think we are looking but unable to compete with EPL clubs.. both Manchester clubs, Chelsea etc have, in the past few years, lapped up bright talents from the region.. Viola managed to get Jovetic though.. good for them

Senatore_M84 · Oct 27, 2011

laxman said:
i think we are looking but unable to compete with EPL clubs.. both Manchester clubs, Chelsea etc have, in the past few years, lapped up bright talents from the region.. Viola managed to get Jovetic though.. good for them

jovetic... who wanted to come to milan over fiorentina
who savicevic told to come to milan
who savicevic recomended to milan

fail

laxman · Oct 27, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
jovetic... who wanted to come to milan over fiorentina
who savicevic told to come to milan
who savicevic recomended to milan

fail

that is just one example.. we have been linked to others like Savic who most recently ended up in Citeh and another dude (Livaja?) who preferred to go to Inter..

I'm sure the management observed Jovetic but hey we have those stupid reasons not to sign people coz we are full of champions (tbf Jovetic cost something like 7m which is not a small amount for a player of his age playing in a weaker league.. Viola were willing to bet on him, we didn't, and they got it right

Bunnee · Oct 27, 2011

Livaja is a Milan fan, but he was unable to join our youth ranks. Some restrictions or god knows what. He said it's hard for him to join his fav clubs arch rival

Naraku · Oct 28, 2011

Vidic is another one to add to the list, Savicevic recommended him to Milan LONG before he went to United.We are over due for another Balkan star!

Seratore · Oct 28, 2011

the main problem is the non - EU rule. him being 17 years of age doesn't change the rule because it affects primavera players and others too.

so, this is a big problem.

second, livaja signed a pre-contract with inter because they were first on him , then we came but it was too late because of that pre-contract and he HAD to go there + he had to be placed in Lugano Fc to avoid the non -eu rule. this season he is in cesena (via inter( and he has played some minor minutes for them ) but the deal is that he will go from cesena to inter in winter transfer period because for transfers within Italy for non - eu players they don't apply this rule.

the third thing - before the start of this season , when the president of partizan was in milano , they were talks with milan about savic. the price was 8-10 m euros but the problem was the non-eu rule so we waited. not long after that city came with the offer of 12 m euros and they siezed the opportunity and sold him for big bucks.

simple bussiness ...

i hope that after Croatia goes into Eu we will monitor this region closely like juve and inter do ...

Jivara · Oct 28, 2011

acmilan4ever said:
Partizan teenage striker Lazar Markovic,The 17-year-old Serbian has been compared to Montenegro's Steven Jovetic, has admitted he wants to play for Andre Villas-Boas' Chelsea in the future: "Chelsea is the club that I love the most, of course after Partizan.I would love to play there. I believe that the Premier League is the best football and that's the type of league which suits me."

Judging from this video, this good seems good at the build up of play, is fast, well built but I want to see how he shoots. I am sure he can become really good though.

MilanMB · Nov 9, 2011

Worlds biggest talents according to 101greatgoals.com. (alphabetic order)

1. Adryan, Flamengo, 17.
2. David Alaba, Bayern München, 19.
3. Thiago Alcantara, Barcelona, 20.
4. Jano Ananidze, Spartak Moskva, 19.
5. Khouma Babacar, Fiorentina, 18.
6. Mario Balotelli, Manchester City, 21.
7. Yassine Benzia, Lyon, 17.
8. Villiyen Bijev, Fortuna Dusseldorf/Liverpool, 18.
9. Fabio Borini, Roma/Parma, 20.
10. Ryad Boudebouz, Sochaux, 21.

11. Joel Campbell, Lorient/Arsenal, 19.
12. Sergio Canales, Valencia/Real Madrid, 20.
13. Luc Castaignos, Inter, 19.
14. Sebastian Coates, Liverpool, 21.
15. Diego Contento, Bayern Munich, 21.
16. Douglas Costa, Shakhtar Donetsk, 21.
17. Souleymane Coulibaly, Tottenham, 16.
18. Thibaut Courtois, Atletico Madrid/Chelsea, 19
19. Philippe Coutinho, Inter, 19.

20. Isaac Cuenca, Barcelona, 20
21. Kevin De Bruyne, Genk, 20.
22. David De Gea, Manchester United, 21.
23. Gerard Deulofeu, Barcelona, 17.
24. Jean Marie Dongou, Barcelona, 16.
25. Dudu, Dynamo Kiev, 19.
26. Alan Dzagoev, Spartak Moskva, 21.
27. Magnus Eikrem, Molde, 21.
28. Kyle Ebecilio, Arsenal, 17.
29. Lorenzo Ebecilio, Ajax, 20.

30. Stephan El Shaarawy, Milan, 19.
31. Christian Eriksen, Ajax, 19.
32. Ioannis Fetfatzidis, Olympiakos, 20.
33. Gueida Fofana, Lyon, 20.
34. Giuliano, Dnipro, 21.
35. Julian Draxler, Schalke, 18.
36. Mario Gotze, Borussia Dortmund, 19.
37. Clement Grenier, Lyon, 20.
38. Antoine Griezmann, Real Sociedad, 20.
39. John Guidetti, Feyenoord/Manchester City, 19.

40. Lukman Haruna, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
41. Eden Hazard, Lille, 20.
42. Abel Hernandez, Palermo, 21.
43. Markus Henriksen, Rosenborg, 19.
44. Son Heung-Min, Hamburg, 19.
45. Lewis Holtby, Schalke, 21.
46. Phil Jones, Manchester United, 19.
47. Vaclav Kadlec, Sparta Prague, 19.
48. Maksym Koval, Dynamo Kiev, 18.
49. Toni Kroos, Bayern Munich, 21.

50. Bojan Krkic, Roma, 21.
51. Sergiy Kryvstov, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
52. Alexandre Lacazette, Lyon, 20.
53. Erik Lamela, Roma, 19.
54. Manuel Lanzini, Fluminense/River Plate, 18.
55. Adem Ljajic, Fiorentina, 20.
56. Romelu Lukaku, Chelsea, 18.
57. Adam Maher, AZ Alkmaar, 18.
58. Eliaquim Mangala, Porto, 20.
59. Emmanuel Mayuka, Young Boys, 20.

60. Alexander Merkel, Genoa, 20.
61. Alvaro Morata, Real Madrid, 19.
62. Ravel Morrison, Manchester United, 18
63. Iker Muniain, Athletic Bilbao, 18
64. Marc Muniesa, Barcelona, 19.
65. Ezequiel Munoz, Palermo, 21.
66. Yann M’Vila, Rennes, 21.
67. Neymar, Santos, 19.
68. M’Baye Niang, Caen, 16.
69. Sotiris Ninis, Panathinaikos, 21.

70. Nicolas N’Koulou, Marseille, 21.
71. Tommy Oar, Utrecht, 19.
72. Joel Obi, Inter, 20.
73. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, 18.
74. Dani Pacheco, Rayo Vallecano/Atletico Madrid/Liverpool, 20.
75. Marc Pelosi, Liverpool, 17.
76. Lucas Piazon, Chelsea, 17.
77. Paul Pogba, Manchester United, 18.
78. Miralem Pjanic, Roma, 21.
79. Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal, 20.

80. James Rodriguez, FC Porto, 20.
81. Jack Rodwell, Everton, 20.
82. Mamadou Sakho, PSG, 21.
83. Yaya Sanogo, Auxerre, 18.
84. Stefan Savic, Manchester City, 20.
85. Georgi Schennikov, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
86. Wojciech Szczesny, Arsenal, 21.
87. Raheem Sterling, Liverpool, 16.
88. Lucas Silva, Sao Paulo, 19.
89. Xherdan Shaqiri, Basel, 20.

90. Brek Shea, FC Dallas, 21.
91. Lacina Traore, Kuban Krasnodar, 21.
92. Raphael Varane, Real Madrid, 18.
93. Kyle Walker, Tottenham, 21.
94. Georginio Wijnaldum, PSV, 20.
95. Connor Wickham, Sunderland, 18.
96. Jack Wilshere, Arsenal, 19.
97. Granit Xhaka, Basel, 19.
98. Samed Yesil, Bayer Leverkusen, 17.
99. Sercan Yildirim, Galatasaray, 21.
100. Wilfried Zaha, Crystal Palace, 18.
101. Enzo Zidane, Real Madrid, 16.

AC_Wesley · Nov 9, 2011

Waiting on the first member to be mad at why player A is higher listed as player B...

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Nov 9, 2011

Sven · Nov 9, 2011

I really don't get why they pick players that never played professional football in this kind of list.

Overhype at this best.

Pedro · Nov 9, 2011

Weird list. (From Dutch league) no Strootman, Labyad... but Oar? Maher is rightfully chosen though, real talent.

No Iturbe from Porto? No Pato? Balotelli is listed, so can't say Pato is too proven, else Balotelli shouldn't be there also.

And I'm sure many examples of failing can be mentioned, but this is what pops up in me the first few seconds.

Senatore_M84 · Nov 9, 2011

Pedro said:
Weird list. (From Dutch league) no Strootman, Labyad... but Oar? Maher is rightfully chosen though, real talent.

No Iturbe from Porto? No Pato? Balotelli is listed, so can't say Pato is too proven, else Balotelli shouldn't be there also.

And I'm sure many examples of failing can be mentioned, but this is what pops up in me the first few seconds.

the whole list is 21 or younger.

balotelli is 21, pato is 22.

Maybe it's time we stop treating pato like a 'prospect with potential' ?

SpartanMilan · Nov 9, 2011

if El Sha is on the list then Diego Fabbrini should be there as well

Pedro · Nov 9, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
the whole list is 21 or younger.

balotelli is 21, pato is 22.

Maybe it's time we stop treating pato like a 'prospect with potential' ?

Yeah, the list is until 21 I noticed. Messed up with Pato, but Strootman is 21 and should be there along others, and others shouldn't.

And I already called Pato proven.

crazy4milan · Nov 9, 2011

MilanMB said:
Worlds biggest talents according to 101greatgoals.com. (alphabetic order)

1. Adryan, Flamengo, 17.
2. David Alaba, Bayern München, 19.
3. Thiago Alcantara, Barcelona, 20.
4. Jano Ananidze, Spartak Moskva, 19.
5. Khouma Babacar, Fiorentina, 18.
6. Mario Balotelli, Manchester City, 21.
7. Yassine Benzia, Lyon, 17.
8. Villiyen Bijev, Fortuna Dusseldorf/Liverpool, 18.
9. Fabio Borini, Roma/Parma, 20.
10. Ryad Boudebouz, Sochaux, 21.

11. Joel Campbell, Lorient/Arsenal, 19.
12. Sergio Canales, Valencia/Real Madrid, 20.
13. Luc Castaignos, Inter, 19.
14. Sebastian Coates, Liverpool, 21.
15. Diego Contento, Bayern Munich, 21.
16. Douglas Costa, Shakhtar Donetsk, 21.
17. Souleymane Coulibaly, Tottenham, 16.
18. Thibaut Courtois, Atletico Madrid/Chelsea, 19
19. Philippe Coutinho, Inter, 19.

20. Isaac Cuenca, Barcelona, 20
21. Kevin De Bruyne, Genk, 20.
22. David De Gea, Manchester United, 21.
23. Gerard Deulofeu, Barcelona, 17.
24. Jean Marie Dongou, Barcelona, 16.
25. Dudu, Dynamo Kiev, 19.
26. Alan Dzagoev, Spartak Moskva, 21.
27. Magnus Eikrem, Molde, 21.
28. Kyle Ebecilio, Arsenal, 17.
29. Lorenzo Ebecilio, Ajax, 20.

30. Stephan El Shaarawy, Milan, 19.
31. Christian Eriksen, Ajax, 19.
32. Ioannis Fetfatzidis, Olympiakos, 20.
33. Gueida Fofana, Lyon, 20.
34. Giuliano, Dnipro, 21.
35. Julian Draxler, Schalke, 18.
36. Mario Gotze, Borussia Dortmund, 19.
37. Clement Grenier, Lyon, 20.
38. Antoine Griezmann, Real Sociedad, 20.
39. John Guidetti, Feyenoord/Manchester City, 19.

40. Lukman Haruna, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
41. Eden Hazard, Lille, 20.
42. Abel Hernandez, Palermo, 21.
43. Markus Henriksen, Rosenborg, 19.
44. Son Heung-Min, Hamburg, 19.
45. Lewis Holtby, Schalke, 21.
46. Phil Jones, Manchester United, 19.
47. Vaclav Kadlec, Sparta Prague, 19.
48. Maksym Koval, Dynamo Kiev, 18.
49. Toni Kroos, Bayern Munich, 21.

50. Bojan Krkic, Roma, 21.
51. Sergiy Kryvstov, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
52. Alexandre Lacazette, Lyon, 20.
53. Erik Lamela, Roma, 19.
54. Manuel Lanzini, Fluminense/River Plate, 18.
55. Adem Ljajic, Fiorentina, 20.
56. Romelu Lukaku, Chelsea, 18.
57. Adam Maher, AZ Alkmaar, 18.
58. Eliaquim Mangala, Porto, 20.
59. Emmanuel Mayuka, Young Boys, 20.

60. Alexander Merkel, Genoa, 20.
61. Alvaro Morata, Real Madrid, 19.
62. Ravel Morrison, Manchester United, 18
63. Iker Muniain, Athletic Bilbao, 18
64. Marc Muniesa, Barcelona, 19.
65. Ezequiel Munoz, Palermo, 21.
66. Yann M’Vila, Rennes, 21.
67. Neymar, Santos, 19.
68. M’Baye Niang, Caen, 16.
69. Sotiris Ninis, Panathinaikos, 21.

70. Nicolas N’Koulou, Marseille, 21.
71. Tommy Oar, Utrecht, 19.
72. Joel Obi, Inter, 20.
73. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, 18.
74. Dani Pacheco, Rayo Vallecano/Atletico Madrid/Liverpool, 20.
75. Marc Pelosi, Liverpool, 17.
76. Lucas Piazon, Chelsea, 17.
77. Paul Pogba, Manchester United, 18.
78. Miralem Pjanic, Roma, 21.
79. Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal, 20.

80. James Rodriguez, FC Porto, 20.
81. Jack Rodwell, Everton, 20.
82. Mamadou Sakho, PSG, 21.
83. Yaya Sanogo, Auxerre, 18.
84. Stefan Savic, Manchester City, 20.
85. Georgi Schennikov, Dynamo Kiev, 20.
86. Wojciech Szczesny, Arsenal, 21.
87. Raheem Sterling, Liverpool, 16.
88. Lucas Silva, Sao Paulo, 19.
89. Xherdan Shaqiri, Basel, 20.

90. Brek Shea, FC Dallas, 21.
91. Lacina Traore, Kuban Krasnodar, 21.
92. Raphael Varane, Real Madrid, 18.
93. Kyle Walker, Tottenham, 21.
94. Georginio Wijnaldum, PSV, 20.
95. Connor Wickham, Sunderland, 18.
96. Jack Wilshere, Arsenal, 19.
97. Granit Xhaka, Basel, 19.
98. Samed Yesil, Bayer Leverkusen, 17.
99. Sercan Yildirim, Galatasaray, 21.
100. Wilfried Zaha, Crystal Palace, 18.
101. Enzo Zidane, Real Madrid, 16.

11.

. 101. such a name prospect. Where's John Jairo Ruiz wanted by Barcelona and Lille? 90. Blondie ginger....

Senatore_M84 · Nov 9, 2011

brek shea> Costa Rica

Brek Shea is headed to Arsenal

The FC Dallas star -- in Paris for the national team training camp ahead of Friday's match with France and Tuesday's match in Slovenia -- will head off to Arsenal next week for a month of training with the English Premiership giants.

finally so you know what kind of jokes latin american's are-

crazy4milan · Nov 9, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
brek shea> Costa Rica

I'm just glad our prospect doesn't look like this

Joel Campbell is Arsenal's already

(didn't need to go to a month of trainning camp :lol:

). And obviously 19> 21

And that's right you don't mess with Costa Rica blondie ginger prick

.

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Nov 9, 2011

These folks basically copied my youth team in soccer manager ....that would explain the omission of Strootman...he's locking down a cm spot in 1st team

Pedro · Nov 9, 2011

I forgot to say that Ter Stegen is missing.

Noobs

Senatore_M84 · Nov 9, 2011

crazy4milan said:
I'm just glad our prospect doesn't look like this

LOL, you really want me to post pics of your team? Minus a couple it looks like special olympic rejects. Very ugly and short.

Ugly and Tall > Ugly and short.

Joel Campbell is Arsenal's already (didn't need to go to a month of trainning camp ). And obviously 19> 21

Lorient isn't arsenal

. IF Arsenal loans you out, you're really not a prospect for the future

And that's right you don't mess with Costa Rica blondie ginger prick .

you sound like ashish. Good job

crazy4milan · Nov 9, 2011

Senatore_M84 said:
LOL, you really want me to post pics of your team? Minus a couple it looks like special olympic rejects. Very ugly and short.

Ugly and Tall > Ugly and short.

CR's NT is NOT short

, I think we only have like 4 under 1.80 cms. As for my team yes it is traditional that my team is ugly

, makes me more proud about it, ugly but winners :proud:

, no need to bring foreign stars to cover up our uglyness.

Senatore_M84 said:
Lorient isn't arsenal . IF Arsenal loans you out, you're really not a prospect for the future

Work permits

Better than Messi in Copa América

.

Senatore_M84 · Nov 18, 2011

Barcelona: Barcelona have reached an agreement to sign emerging talent Rafinha, the brother of first-team player and Spanish Under-21 international Thiago Alcantara, until 2014.

The 18-year-old Rafinha, whose full name is Rafael Alcantara, has signed a three-year contract and will remain with the Spanish champions until the close of the 2013-14 season, following reports that clubs across Europe, including Real Madrid, were monitoring his progress.
Barcelona says Rafinha's buy-out clause will be 12 million Euros ($16 million) until the close of the 2012-13 season, when it will rise to 30 million Euros ($40 million).

The son of former Brazil international, Mazinho, Rafinha's splendid showing this season had sparked rumours of Real Madrid and English club Chelsea showing interest in him. But Barcelona acted quickly to ensure that one of the most promising players from their youth system does not abandon the club.

Rafinha plays in deep-lying striker role, he is fast, able to beat a defender in a one-on-one and has an excellent goal scoring record with six goals in 20 appearances for the B-team. He has also represented Spain at U-16, 17 and 19 levels.

Rafa Alcantara-
Born- Feb 12, 1993
178cm

Looks a lot more physically developed than any barca player or generally most attacking 18 year olds.

Capo Ultra · Nov 30, 2011

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Nov 30, 2011

Good Player Guide #17 – Kevin Strootman

Kevin Strootman
(PSV Eindhoven / Holland)

The town of Ridderkerk in the province of South Holland doesn’t hold many claims to fame but the rise of one of their sons could put it on the map. The meteoric rise of Kevin Strootman – born in 1990 – has seen him go from playing in the second tier of Dutch football with Sparta Rotterdam to scoring for the national team (L’Oranje) in the space of a year.

The former New York Yankees pitcher Lefty Gomez’s assertion ‘better to be lucky than good’ applies with Strootman, though he’s been lucky but also rather good due to good old fashioned hard work that has seen him rise up the ranks.

Bert van Marwijk, the Dutch national team manager, described him after his exemplary performance against Finland (only his second ever start for Holland) as a mixture of Nigel de Jong and Rafael van der Vaart ‘not too conservative but not too offensive’ in the words of Goldilocks ‘just right’. He’s not tough tackling and wouldn’t be classified as a defensive midfielder though he routinely plays as the sole screening midfielder for club PSV Eindhoven.

A contrast to his days as a trequartista with Sparta whom he joined in 2007 playing for their youth team his performances saw him promoted to the senior team in January 2008 and after his first full season – which ended in Sparta relegated – he began to garner attention from a hosts of top clubs at home including FC Twente who came close to his signature in the summer of 2010.

A move did come a few months later as he swapped Rotterdam for FC Utrecht and a change of position, becoming more of a deep-lying playmaker (regista), though his attacking instincts remained as he often played a box-to-box role as he still does with PSV.

The strongest facets of his game are his distribution (either short passes or long across the ground or aerially), spatial awareness, intuition, recycling possession and retaining the ball once lost. His languid frame sometimes would give off the wrong impression to his style of play as his mobility and movement across the pitch are some of his more underrated features. Another is his leadership and former Sparta boss Foeke Booy – who made him skipper – believes he will bring that much needed role at PSV.

It was his continual notable performances with FC Utrecht that caught the eye of Van Marwijk who handed him his debut against Austria in February 2011, a performance he was later praised for especially by teammates, including Wesley Sneijder who complimented him on his rapid assimilation. He was also one of the few to shine in Holland’s summer trip to South America to face Brazil and Uruguay. His standout performance against the Seleção as a regista alongside Nigel de Jong was much lauded back home.

At club level Utrecht would finish ninth in the Eredivisie and Strootman was expected to remain for another campaign at Stadion Galgenwaard, but suitors came sniffing. After the failure to sign Stijn Schaars from AZ who chose Lisbon instead of Eindhoven, PSV swooped for Strootman alongside teammate Dries Mertens in a combined deal work €13M which could end up as a steal if it wasn’t already.

“I could have continued my development at Utrecht, but PSV is one of the top clubs in Holland, where I can quickly become a better player,” Strootman in an interview just after completing his €4.5 million move to PSV.

“This was the most logical step. There have been a number of steps in quick succession, but I do not think about it. I wish every day to get the best out of myself and see where it leads.”

Another advantage in his move to PSV will be working with one of Holland’s great captains and PSV in the shape of assistant coach Phillip Cocu. Like Strootman he too was an elegant left-footed midfielder.

After a few games he’s already settled in playing his natural game which has complimented Fred Rutten’s side. And against SV Ried of Austria in the Europa League he scored his first goal for his new club, a delicate stroke into the goal.

With the absence of Nigel de Jong and Rafael van der Vaart he was given the nod to start alongside Mark van Bommel for L’Oranje in their games against San Marino and Finland. It seems at the moment he’s bypassed the likes of Schaars, Theo Janssen and Demy de Zeeuw in the pecking order.

Also it seems Strootman has benefited from Van Marwijk’s apparent change to his midfield system after last summer’s World Cup borne out of necessity rather than design at the time. A regista alongside either one of De Jong or Van Bommel has allowed the Dutch to play a more fluid game which has echoed past sides of the last 30 years. While Van der Vaart in the earlier qualifiers slotted in expertly so has Strootman.

In the 11-0 rout of San Marino, aside from two elegant assists he did not really have much to do. However in Helsinki everything that’s good about his game shone as he excelled in midfield often rotating with Wesley Sneijder and both combined for him to score his first goal for his country, a picturesque goal worth framing.

Strootman has come a long way in a short space of time and one can forgive him if his head has yet to comprehend everything that has happened. Before the internationals he spoke of still trying to keep his feet on the ground but with the likes of Tottenham and AS Roma already having him on their radars before his move to PSV one wonders if more clubs will add him to their list if his impeccable rise continues.

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