The winter transfer period is just around the corner. Feyenoord, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ayase Ueda, Yankuba Minteh and Ramiz Zerrouki, temporarily has to miss four players in the selection who are active with their country during winter final tournaments, as a result of which the club feels forced to add some reinforcement to the selection. What can Feyenoord expect? 1908.nl looks ahead.
Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Iran) and Ayase Ueda (Japan) are preparing for the Asian Cup, while Yankuba Minteh (Gambia) and Ramiz Zerrouki (Algeria) will compete for the Africa Cup. The Asian Cup takes place from January 12 to February 10, while the African Cup is scheduled from January 13 to February 11. Japan, Iran and Algeria in particular seem to be able to go far during the tournaments.
The Eredivisie continues to rumble along during the tournaments. In the period in question, Feyenoord will successively meet NEC (home), Vitesse (away), FC Twente (home), AZ (away) and Sparta Rotterdam (home). Before the competition match with FC Twente, Feyenoord will also play for the eighth finals in the KNVB Cup, in which the Rotterdam team will face the eventual winner of the catch-up match between PSV and FC Twente at home.
The day after the final return of the aforementioned players, the first meeting against AS Roma in the interim round of the UEFA Europa League is also scheduled. A full programme, which is an extra reason for Feyenoord to go to the market during the winter. Head coach Arne Slot previously indicated that not all four players mentioned will be replaced one-on-one, but that reinforcements are expected. After all, the club is still competing for second place (which entitles them to the group stage of the Champions League), the Europa League and the national cup.
Reinforcement is currently mainly sought in the vanguard, where two players are temporarily absent. The season has so far shown that none of the wingers consistently excel, which leaves no winger undisputed. In terms of reinforcement, Feyenoord prefers a multifunctional, unpredictable winger who is creative, good in 1-on-1 situations, has a good dribble, is good on the ball and defends well. Preference is given to a right winger who can also play striker, such as Jovan Mijatović. In Ueda’s absence, the reserve striker role will be temporarily filled by Igor Paixão.
Reinforcements are also needed at the back. On paper, Feyenoord has ‘only’ seven defenders in its selection this season, which means that not every position is double occupied. The club has been wanting to add an eighth defender for some time now. With the hamstring injury of Bart Nieuwkoop, who has not yet managed to make a big impression since his return to Feyenoord, the call for reinforcement has only increased.
Feyenoord wishes to add a right defender to the selection. That could be a right back, but according to insiders it is more likely that a right central defender will be brought in. In the ideal world, it will be a player who can play in both positions, so that Feyenoord can also immediately respond to a possible, impending departure of Lutsharel Geertruida. The reserve captain will be out of contract in eighteen months.
Two reinforcements: that is Feyenoord’s spearhead this winter. But behind central midfielder Quinten Timber, who is really making waves this season, there is no direct replacement available in terms of basic material. Thomas van den Belt does not seem ready to fill that role yet and a rental is therefore being considered. Feyenoord has a non-continental player in mind for behind Timber, but the chance of reinforcement in midfield is currently very small. There is nothing concrete going on there.
Some things will also have to happen on the outbound side. Until recently, Javairô Dilrosun was highly recommended for a winter departure, but he has been getting enough playing minutes lately. Alireza Jahanbakhsh’s Champions League dream is over and he will be out of contract in six months. Feyenoord will not lift the club option for an extra year of Jahanbakhsh. If the Rotterdam team still wants to keep some of the Iranian international, a winter sale is necessary. A departure of Dilrosun and/or Jahanbakhsh will only pave the way for a new right winger.
Feyenoord has four goalkeepers with Justin Bijlow, Timon Wellenreuther, Mikki van Sas and Kostas Lamprou. If clubs come forward for one of the reserve goalkeepers, Feyenoord would like to listen to the story – but no contract player is in the kicking chair. Marcos López settles into his reserve role, but on the other hand prefers a starting position. If a club with the right story and a winter offer that cannot be refused comes along, Feyenoord is expected to cooperate and bring back a new left-footed defensive replacement.
Will Feyenoord lose another strongman from the successful skeleton? That question is difficult to answer at the moment. Lutsharel Geertruida saw his transfer to RB Leipzig fall through in an unpleasant way last summer and a new contract with Feyenoord does not seem to be possible. Now Feyenoord can still cash in big time for Geertruida, which seems to be less the case next summer. Santiago Gimenez is being talked about in various Mexican media for a transfer, but that will only happen this winter if a real top club comes forward with an exorbitant amount for Feyenoord.
By estimate Football Coefficient was already good for Feyenoord’s European campaign this season almost thirty-six million euros — but who the transferbalans van Transfer market takes into account that Feyenoord spends more money than it brings in. Feyenoord previously exceeded the salary ceiling for its players in 2023, but adjusted it to approximately the level of PSV after the extension of the head coach. The risky financial developments also have consequences for current budgets.
Of course, there is a transfer budget of several million euros available, but the situation in South Rotterdam is still not such that money is splashing against the skirting boards. That situation would obviously have been different if Feyenoord had managed to hibernate in the UEFA Champions League, but the Rotterdam team must now also budget for the financial proceeds from the intermediate round of the UEFA Europa League.
What kind of structures does Feyenoord come up with if it wants to sign a player? This will differ per player and per club from which the player is to be brought. If Feyenoord takes a player from the English Premier League, Feyenoord can actually only rent and must hope for a purchase option. Players from lower competitions will be easier to sign for the longer term, but the wish from the technical staff is to bring in a player who will be there immediately.
For the time being, there is nothing concrete in terms of incoming and outgoing transfers at Feyenoord, which is logical: officially speaking, the winter transfer period has yet to open and that will happen on Tuesday January 2. By then, general and technical director Dennis te Kloese will have returned from holiday, after which he will also report to Marbella for the club’s training camp. According to the latest information, Feyenoord has until Thursday, February 1 to strike on the transfer market.
Feyenoord’s technical staff hopes to have added the first reinforcement to the selection at the training camp in Marbella, or to add it during the Spanish visit. The first real fireworks on the transfer market are expected around the turn of the year. The plans of head coach Slot and Dennis te Kloese have already been made around Celtic away: it is now about seeking concrete rapprochement with clubs, players and agents.
The Rotterdam team’s scouting has its winter shadow lists ready for each position, but the department was hardly used by the club’s policymakers last summer: not a single suggested foreign name was signed from the current scouting in the summer of 2023. This mainly has to do with the new organizational structure, where the head coach and the general manager have almost everything in charge. It remains to be seen whether the path taken last summer will also be continued this window.
What kind of names can we count on? Inquiring earlier about Arnaut Danjuma turned out to be futile in the summer. He is currently not assured of a starting place at Everton, which rents him from Villarreal. Only if Danjuma wants to hand in, Villarreal wants to withdraw the loan and Everton also agrees to this, Danjuma would become an option and could be in the spotlight for the 2024 European Championship – but that is not an option now. Danjuma’s name can still appeal to Feyenoord’s technical staff.
To strengthen the defense, the names of Nino Mota and Chris Richards were previously mentioned, but both players no longer seem feasible. This all has to do with the strength of the wealthy Premier League: Nino does not seem far away from his transfer to Nottingham Forest, while Richards has again been making quite a few minutes on the highest stage at Crystal Palace in recent weeks.
We conclude the long read with an image of the current squad depth, which speaks for itself. For now: have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, Feyenoorders! 🎄🎆 Thank you for your daily visit to 1908.nl — we look forward to the upcoming transfer window.
2023-12-23 09:00:00
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