at the day before the last match of the year, the players and club staff pack their bags, ready to go on vacation. Especially since they will be short since the Olympians will be on leave from the final whistle tomorrow night in Angers, for a resumption on December 31.
“The players will have their suitcases ready. You journalists, we coaches, we will also have our suitcases ready. Angers too. It’s like that “, admitted André Villas-Boas, aware that the Christmas holidays are already in everyone’s mind.
Some elements may even start to take their cards, aware that their future will not be written on the side of the Canebière in 2021.
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Candidates for the Euro
« The January transfer window is getting stranger and stranger. It mostly works the last week. What must be taken into account is the players who can go to the Euro and who do not play in their club. Normally it is this type of player who will animate the transfers ”. On December 19, 2019, before the reception in Nîmes, the Marseille coach gave the keys to the winter transfer window of January 2020.
Since then, the coronavirus has passed there and Euro-2020 has been postponed until this summer. In January 2021, the keys will therefore be the same and Kevin Strootman ticks all the boxes to feed the transfer window.
The Dutchman was not called by Frank de Boer during the last Oranje rally. In one year, his club playing time has been considerably reduced: 158 minutes in Ligue 1, half of which in the first match of the year in Brest (72 minutes). In the European Cup, he has a total of 3 entries and 28 minutes spent in the field.
On Saturday, Strootman did not even come into play against Reims. Morgan Sanson was however injured, but AVB preferred Pape Gueye to him.
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Behind Pape Gueye in the hierarchy of circles
“He’s always ready to play. He works a lot on his physique and injury prevention ”, had greeted his coach before the arrival of the Champenois. « With him, I have no problem with that aspect. He’ll be ready, but we’ll see what works best for us. » Praised for his professionalism and his role as a big brother in the locker room, the former Roma player has descended into the hierarchy of midfielders.
After the victory in Monaco ten days ago, Villas-Boas had let it be known: “This is the sector where there is the most competition this year. All of them are amazing. I had a conversation with Kevin the other day. Unfortunately for him, we have a lot of competition. “
The future of the Dutchman, recruited at a gold price in the summer of 2018 (25 million euros minimum) now depends on his willingness to play or not the Euro with the Netherlands.
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