Tag Archives: Elvis Manu

How does PSV replace Memphis Depay?

May 11, 2015 Will Burns 3 Comments

The announcement last week of the transfer of Memphis Depay to Manchester United has left PSV with a significant hole to fill. Luckily for PSV, they have money in the bank now in order to try and fill this hole. We all know and appreciate Memphis’ talents and he might be one of those once in a generation footballers but PSV need to ask the question “How do we Replace Memphis”? Even with Memphis leaving, PSV still have a very talented side but they will certainly miss the X-Factor that he provided. Replacing Memphis will be a hard task but there are some options at PSV’s disposal. Rogier Waalder looks at the candidates:

Jesus Manuel Corona (FC Twente)

One of the only players in the Eredivisie this year who catches the eye as much as Depay does, is the Mexican winger Jesus Corona, who plays for FC Twente. A very tricky and skilful winger, he certainly has the ability to turn a game like Memphis does. He has scored 13 goals in his 32 games this season and his dribbling, first touch and technique are in the same class as Memphis. He does lack the power and free-kick abilities of Memphis but is only 22 years old. FC Twente will be holding a fire-sale in the summer to clear their debts and so Corona is very much on the market. A big stumbling block, though, is his wage demands with a recent poll showing that 85% of PSV fans do not think he is worth the reported 1 million EURO salary that he is after.

Sam Larsson (SC Heerenveen)

Swedish international Larsson is a new arrival to Heerenveen this season, after joining from Goteburg in the off-season. He has proven to be yet another potential Scandinavian jewel that the Heerenveen scouting team has delivered over the years. Has all the same hallmarks as Corona but represents a more powerful, cheaper option. Larsson has contributed 8 goals and 6 assists in his 20 games this season. Heerenveen have already offered him a new contract, but he has refused to consider this at present. He has a contract until 2018 so Heerenveen aren’t in any rush to sell but PSV might be tempted to make them an offer they can’t refuse.

Ricardo Kishna (Ajax)

Yes he plays for Ajax presently and yes this is probably the biggest obstacle in Kishna going to PSV, but transfers between PSV & Ajax are not unheard of. Kishna is a year younger than Memphis and despite his young age has already proven that he can light up the Eredivisie. His flair, trickery, dribbling and pace are very comparable to Memphis and he has a return of 5 goals and assists from 20 matches this season. This current Dutch youth team player only has 1 year to run on his Ajax contract, so he could force the issue if PSV make a serious play for his services.

Elvis Manu (Feyenoord)

Plays for Feyenoord, so again some question marks surrounding a desire to sell him to PSV but he also has the hallmarks of someone who could replace Memphis. A 21-year old natural Left Winger, Manu has had a good season for Feyenoord with 14 goals in 34 matches, including some great performances in the Europa League. Manu has great pace and strength but his overall technique and consistency would need some improvement to reach Memphis levels but definitely a great raw talent.

Steven Berghuis (AZ Alkmaar)

Berghuis has been a standout performer for AZ this season with 10 goals in 22 appearances. The former Twente youth player can play on either wing or as Striker and has excellent technical and passing abilities. He has a strong desire to succeed (much like Memphis does) and would arguably be the cheapest of the options presented thus far. He probably isn’t quite at the standard that Memphis is but would be a good squad player, in conjunction with another big name signing.

Bilal Ould-Chikh (FC Twente)

If PSV are looking at a longer term prospect that they can bring up to Memphis’ standard then Ould-Chikh might be their guy. Only 17 years old he has already played 15 full games for FC Twente this season. An out and out winger with great technique, pace and dribbling abilities Ould-Chikh certainly has the potential to rival Memphis one day. FC Twente might be needing cash to satisfy their creditors at the moment, but surely they’ll want to hang on to their star prospect and try and build a team around him.

Adnan Januzaj (Manchester United)

Januzaj has been on the outer at Manchester United since Van Gaal’s arrival and was rumoured to have been offered as part of any deal taking Memphis to England. It doesn’t look like this has eventuated but a cashed up PSV could do a lot worse than taking the talented Belgian to Eindhoven, even if it is on loan. Even though he has not scored in the Premier League this year, the footballing world is very aware of Januzaj’s abilities with a ball at his feet and his technique and flair do rival those of Memphis. He is on a massive salary at Man Utd and this is why a loan move but be the best for both teams, particularly as Memphis will certainly be a direct rival for Januzaj.

Serge Gnabry (Arsenal)

Another potential loan option is the Arsenal youngster, Serge Gnabry. Like Januzaj Gnabry burst onto the scene last season before injury curtailed his plans and has had limited game time since. He may be best suited to a spell in the Eredivisie, whilst also getting guaranteed Champions League action. Gnabry has fantastic physical attributes and his attacking tendancies would be very well suited to this PSV side.

Ola John (Benfica)

For a 22-year old John seems to have been around for a long time, and certainly his club movements would indicate the same. Currently at Benfica, the lure of returning home to PSV may be one that suits John as he looks to break back into the Dutch national team setup. Another out and out pacy winger John could be the perfect provider for Luuk de Jong.

Filip Kostic (Stuttgart)

22-year old Serbian Kostic played 2 seasons in the Eredivisie with Groningen before earning a move to Stuttgart in the off-season. He has played reasonably well in a struggling side with 3 goals and 7 assists thus far. He has tremendous cross abilities and is also an accomplished finisher. If Stuttgart do get relegated this season this might be enough to convince Kostic to return to the Netherlands and the lure of Champions League football.

There are some options available internally at PSV at present headlined by the wantaway Zakaria Bakkali and the raw but very inconsistent Florian Jozefzoon. A long term potential replacement is the exciting young Steven Bergwijn, who made his Eredivisie debut on the weekend at the age of 17. Bergwijn is very highly thought of at PSV and has tremendous pace and acceleration. If his technical abilities continue to develop over the next few seasons he is definitely one to watch.

Click on Rogier’s name to follow him on Twitter.

FEATURE

Feyenoord – A Tactical Analysis

February 2, 2015 Will Burns 1 Comment

If you are an Eredivisie fan and you love the tactical side of the beautiful game, then you are probably very impressed with the tactical manoeuvres of Feyenoord this season. The Rotterdam giant saw a huge exodus of players at the end of last season and many people thought they would have had a very challenging time this season. Those people were partially right, since Feyenoord struggled at the beginning of the season and only won one of their first six games. However, since then, the 2002 UEFA Cup winners have made significant strides. They currently sit 3^rd in the league and are playing some of the most dominant and invigorating football in the Eredivisie. Home games against Ajax, AZ and FC Twente as well as the away game against PSV have been some of the most stimulating and entertaining displays we have seen from any team in the league this season.

This relatively successful season so far is largely down to how well the players have been able to maintain the tactical set-up of this team. The 4-3-3 formation utilised is being executed with great discipline, hard work and skills by the players. The three main aspects of this Feyenoord system and strategy are as follows:

The Goalkeeping & Defensive Shake Up

Let’s start by looking at the goal keeper and the back four. Vermeer was brought into the team at the beginning of the season to bring more solidity to the defence and he has done just that. His experience, agility and calmness under pressure have not just curtailed the number of goals the team concedes, but it has also seemingly helped to bring confidence into the young centre backs of Van Beek and Kongolo.

The back four of Nilom, Van Beek, Kongolo and Wilkshire have all been playing very impressively. Van Beek brings great physicality and grit to the centre of the defence and Kongolo’s ball-playing and anticipation skills have been complimented by Wilkshire’s exuberant runs along the right full-back position. Nelom has also put in his best performances as a Feyenoord player this season. He has moved from being a very shaky, inconsistent and error-prone left-back last season, to becoming a much more solid and reliable full-back this season. There are still occasions of lapsed concentration and needless giving away of the ball by Nilom this season, but they have been less numerous than last season and his reading of the game has evidently improved.

The Midfield Dynamics

The Feyenoord midfield has been very impressive this season. Clasie continues to be a pass-master and he even ramped up his tackling and overall work rate. El Ahmadi has looked much more impressive in the box-to-box role this season than he looked most of his time at Aston Villa. His very intelligent forward runs have been a great advert for how to play that running midfield position with balance and poise. Immers is the kind of attacking midfielder who runs all game and constantly puts himself in positions to receive the ball. This man is a maverick to some fans as he is not very fast and not particularly technical, nevertheless, he can be quite an effective attacking midfielder at times. Most people would probably agree though that it is his huge selfless work rate that makes him such a useful player.

These three midfield players at times behave as one dynamic organism with an almost telepathic relationship. When Clasie gets the ball he never takes too much time to pick out the runs of Immers or El Ahmadi, each player seems to be fully aware of the intentions of the others at any given time and in any situation. El Ahmadi seems to know when to make a rampaging forward run without leaving Clasie in too much of a vulnerable situation to provide cover for him and Immers is always looking for El Ahmadi’s position to ensure that he can assist with any required covering or forward run. In the recent home game against FC Twente, Immers was practically switching with Clasie as the holding midfielder on several occasions and he still managed to venture forward to score. This dynamic midfield system has been partly responsible for some of the most dominant displays we have seen this season.

The Strike Force

This Feyenoord system requires a fast, strong centre forward that is very good at holding up the ball and getting his teammates into the attacking third. Colin Kazin-Richards plays that role quite well. He constantly moves around the penalty box to pull his markers out of position and use brute strength to hold off central defenders. This holding up of the ball essentially allows his wingers and midfielder to get into the attacking third. And with very fast wingers like Manu and Boetius, it only takes a few seconds for these guys to make runs ahead of him and get into good positions to take a lay-off and cross into the box for Immers or El Ahmadi. Both Beotius and Manu are fast wide men and Manu in particular is deceptively strong. These guys provide very direct runs into the box and with improvements to their finishing, could become much more effective.

Toornstra is playing out of position on the right, but if one didn’t know his resume from his Utrecht and ADO Den Haag days, one could think he is a natural right winger. Toornstra isn’t the flamboyant speedy winger that we are used to seeing in the Dutch top flight. However, this man embodies hard work, dedication and drive for results. He is also, probably one of the better readers of the game in the entire Eredivisie. In fact, he is quite similar to Dirk Kuyt. Both players aren’t very fast, but they read the game very well, track back and defend astutely.

Conclusion

This Feyenoord team is playing an exhilarating, entertaining and dynamic brand of football where the young players are all improving constantly and each line of the team consists of well drilled vibrant players moving in a constant state of relative cohesion and discipline.

Click on Rion’s name above to follow him on Twitter

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Eredivisie Team Of The Week – Round 7

September 30, 2014 Will Burns Leave a comment

Welcome to week seven of our Eredivisie Team of the Week which leads into our Eredivisie ‘Player of the Season’ competition. All players have performed so well this weekend that Martijn Hilhorst and Will Burns have decided they should be in our team of the week. Each player in the eleven receives one point and whichever player is declared ‘Player of the Week’, he receives an extra point.