A Bridge Too Far: Myron Boadu, Vincent Janssen, and the Many Perils of Purchasing Forwards from the Eredivisie
Image: Wikimedia Commons By: Kees van Hemmen Many football fans become fearful when talk turns to their club buying players from the Dutch Eredivisie. In particular, there’s an immense stigma around purchasing forwards from the league famous for its beneficial goalscoring environment. The Eredivisie averaged 3.47 goals per game last season, a figure that paced Europe’s top flight competitions. In recent years, players like Justin Kluivert , Luuk de Jong (twice), and Vincent Janssen have failed to hit the heights many hoped the forwards would upon leaving the Eredivisie. Memphis Depay , too, struggled immediately after leaving his home country, only to become one of Ligue 1’s best forwards in Lyon. The list goes on, and as a result of these players' recent struggles, many fans, and perhaps decision makers at clubs as well, have started to view the league as an unreliable place to find talent. This is particularly interesting given the Eredivisie’s reputation of yesteryear as a bre