Thijs Dallinga (21) is the sensation of the first division this season. On the top scorers list, the Excelsior player with twenty goals shows renowned strikers such as Robert Mühren and Thomas Verheydt.
“I would be lying if I don’t care at all. Ultimately you want to strive for the highest and be the best. You know that Mühren is going to do quite a bit, so it triggered me very much too. It’s nice to have a fight like that.”
When looking back at Dallinga’s twenty goals, it is striking how cold-blooded and mature he finishes the balls face to face with the goalkeeper. The ease with which he scores goals suggests that the Excelsior striker has been around for years, but nothing could be further from the truth, it is only his first full season in professional football.
Injury
Dallinga comes from far away. The striker went through the youth academy of FC Emmen, where he made his debut in professional football four years ago. He then switched to FC Groningen, but that was a difficult period, partly due to a long-term abdominal muscle injury in 2019/20.
“The attachments of my abs were irritated. You use them with everything. With standing up, with tightening and with shooting. That just goes away very difficult. There was also not really a prognosis for how long it lasts, so that was mentally very good heavy.”
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