Below the Radar Analysis

Image: Olaf Kraak, AFP By: Kees van Hemmen By now, most football fans know who Hakim Ziyech is. Last season, Ziyech and his team, AFC Ajax, made an incredibly improbable run to the Champions League semi-final, beating the reigning champions and arguably the best player in the world on their way to a heart-breaking loss to Tottenham Hotspur. It’s a story that everyone in the football world knows, and it brought Ajax, its players, and the Dutch Eredivisie onto the international stage for the first time in more than twenty years. Every player in the side was rumored to be making a major move to one of Europe’s top clubs over the summer, and some of them did. But I can’t seem to shake the feeling that Ziyech was overlooked. Generally linked with moves to teams only as a potential backup, his true quality didn’t seem to be appreciated. Hakim Ziyech should be starting for one of the biggest clubs in the world. Here’s why... Ziyech has had double digit assists in the Eredivisie in