Soon a €100m player?
There is very little doubt, that Santiago Gimenez is one of Europe’s hottest strikers. The Feyenoord forward kicked off the season with 15 goals in 12 games across all competitions. In fact, the weekend’s Eredivisie defeat against Twente Enschede (1-2) weren he was kept off the scoresheet for the first time this year, was an anomaly. Going into matchday 10, Gimenez had scored in nine successive competitive matches for Feyenoord, racking up 15 goals in total, the most of all players playing in any of the top 10 UEFA ranked leagues.
For Area Manager Netherlands Kevin Lux, however, the recent development isn’t a major surprise. “I don’t think it is a sudden explosion in performance,” Lux said. “When he arrived at Feyenoord, last year, he was used as a supporting option next to fellow striker Danilo. The Brazilian was first choice in European matches and Gimenez had to do with a substitute job. When he came on, he scored lots of European goals in the few minutes he got.”
Feyenoord signed the now 22-year-old Mexican striker for €6 million from Liga MX side Cruz Azul in the summer of 2022. The son of Mazatlán FC’s Argentine assistant manager Christian Gimenez, Santiago, who was born in Argentina but grew up in Mexico where his dad played football, took some time to adapt to the Eredivisie. But after scoring just two goals in the first 13 Eredivisie games last season, Gimenez exploded and would finish the season with 15 goals and two assists. Gimenez’s record was similarly impressive in the Europa League where he scored five goals in nine games.
With Santiago Gimenez – The Biggest winners of the market value update in the Eredivisie (Oct 2023)
13 goals in 9 matches – Santiago Gimenez breaks Luis Suárez-record
“This year, though, he made the next step in his development,” Lux said. “Scoring 13 goals in the first 9 matches was something the Eredivisie hasn’t seen yet this century.” Interestingly enough, Gimenez wasn’t the only player to have done it this year. The other player is Alkmaar sensation Vangelis Pavlidis, who has also managed 13 goals in his first nine games of the season. In unison they have broken a record for the most goals scored to open the season since the turn of the century. That record was previously held by Uruguayan legend Luis Suárez (2009/10 for Ajax) and Mounir El Hamdaoui (2008/09 for Alkmaar).
But what makes Gimenez such a dangerous forward? Gimenez is the type of striker that keeps the opponents defence busy,” Lux said while also once again highlighting his progression from last season. “His numbers for shots on goal per 90 minutes, fouls drawn, dribbles and key passes are all up from last season.” Furthermore, while Gimenez was more of a typical box striker last year, this season he has upped his game outside the box as well and gets more involved in the overall attacking play. “This season, he is the all-round leader in the Feyenoord attack, providing passes and even assists,” Lux added.
Although Gimenez has quickly become a fan favourite in Rotterdam there is no doubt that the Mexican will soon move on to one of Europe’s elite leagues. Among Premier League teams, Arsenal have already been mentioned as a possible destination. Serie A giants Inter Milan are interested, and Bundesliga sides Frankfurt and Dortmund have also been listed but the price tag might soon be too high for either one of those two clubs.
Feyenoord star Santiago Gimenez – The Eredivisie’s first €100m player?
“I think Feyenoord can hang on to him this winter, but next summer, he will most likely become the most expensive Feyenoord player of all time,” Lux said. Feyenoord’s current record departures are Orkun Kökçü (to Benfica this summer) and Luis Sinisterra (to Leeds United last season). In both cases, Feyenoord received a €25m base fee. In Gimenez’s case sources have suggested a fee close to €100m or perhaps even beyond. As a result, the striker saw his market value increase from €6m to €40m as part of the latest Eredivisie update.
That seems like a staggering amount at first glance only, after all Frankfurt received €95m for Randal Kolo Muani, who is two years older, from PSG just a few months ago. Bayern Munich paid €100m+ for a 30-year-old Harry Kane. Other forwards like Victor Osimhen (Napoli) and Lautaro Martínez (Inter Milan) would command even higher fees. In other words, €100m seems to be the going rate for a prolific striker and if Gimenez keeps up his goalscoring record there is a good chance that he could become the Eredivisie’s first €100m player.
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