There are some leagues in the world that are reputed for developing world-class talents. The Eredivisie is one such league. Over the years, several top players have come out of the league, such as Luis Suarez, Memphis Depay, Frenkie de Jong, Matthijs de Ligt, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Christian Eriksen, to name a few. So, whenever a player excels in the league, it automatically attracts the interest of teams all over Europe. And Feyennord’s Santiago Gimenez is the latest example of the trend.
The 21-year-old has been one of the rising stars in the league and has been a critical reason behind Feyennord’s impressive run as they are top of the table with an eight-point lead as they look to win their 16th league title.
And thus, the €4 million that the club paid for him in the summer of 2022 now looks like money well spent. So, who is Santiago Gimenez, and how good is he?
How good is Santiago Gimenez?
Santiago Gimenez was born in Buenos Aires on April 18, 2001, but has played his entire career in Mexico. His youth career started at Cruz Azul, one of the top four clubs in the country. And it took only three years for the player to go from a youth prospect to a senior team debut. His debut came on August 30, 2017, in COPA MX. After that, he played at the level for two years before making his debut in LIGA MX, the top-tier Mexican league.
In his second season at the club, Gimenez scored four goals and provided two assists as Cruz Azul won their ninth league title. The following season he again escorted four goals, but with Cruz Azul slipping to seventh in the aggregate rankings, Gimenez made the trip across the Atlantic to Feyenoord in search of greener pastures.
Coming into the side, Gimjenez was seen as an effective option who could be the perfect target man. However, he has gone beyond that, becoming their top scorer and leading their title charge.
I said it once I’ll say it again.
Santiago Gimenez is a Chicharito regen.
✍🏽🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/VhNvdbUOYo— Garcia Futbol Cards (@GFCards) April 10, 2023
Santiago Gimenez stats
Santiago Gimenez is currently on nine goals in the league, the joint fourth-highest in the league. However, his current form has been even more brilliant, with the forward scoring five goals and providing one assist in the last seven games. In addition, he is only the second player in the club’s history to score in six consecutive away games in the league.
Gimenez is also the team’s first defender and regularly goes for a challenge. According to fbref, the striker only loses one challenge in four matches which shows his incredible tenacity. He also averages one block per 90 minutes, among the top 11 percentile of fullbacks.
He is also quite an efficient dribbler, completing 1.18 carries into the final third and 0,75 carries into the penalty area. In addition, despite being only 1.82 metre-tall, he wins one aerial duel per match.
Santiago Gimenez scout report
Santiago Gimenez is a player that is an out-and-out striker and loves to be involved with the game’s play and around the penalty area. And his goal conversion rate is also an impressive 16 per cent, considering it is the first season in the league.
Gimenez is a player who averages few touches on the ball, which means most of his play occurs when he does not have the ball. And it is here that his off-the-ball work comes into play. Gimenez is a player who plays with his mind and thus is always at the right place at the right time to put the ball into the back of the net.
However, while he is an expert in getting to the final ball, his shooting still needs to improve. Data from FotMob has shown that he has missed 12 big chances so far this season, the fourth-highest in the league. However, Gimenez has a lot of time to iron out his weakness and become good enough for a top club in the future.
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Santiago Gimenez transfer news
With Santiago Gimenez joining Feyenoord just a year ago, only the team paying top dollar may have a chance to sign the talented Mexican this summer. On top of that, Feyenoord know that there is a high chance Gimenez will get even better in the next season, which will bump his transfer fees up significantly.
🚨Clubs from Europe have made Feyenoord's 21-year-old Mexican striker Santiago Giménez a target in the summer transfer window.🇲🇽
➖SL Benfica
➖Manchester United
➖Tottenham
➖Brighton
➖Leicester City
➖West Ham
➖Brentford
➖Sevilla FC
➖Atletico Madrid pic.twitter.com/HHm3zNBHZD— Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) April 10, 2023
In addition, clubs chasing him also know that the player only has one season under his belt in Europe, and if he performs at the same level or better the following season, he could be better equipped to handle the pace of a top-five league.