'Special shout-out': Virgil van Dijk hails 'excellent' player Tottenham sold for £6m
23/09/2022 18:30
Former Tottenham Hotspur misfit Vincent Janssen earned himself a couple of kind words from Virgil van Dijk after an ‘excellent’ display during the Netherlands’ 2-0 UEFA Nations League victory over Poland on Thursday night, via NOS.
Cometh the hour, cometh two ex-Spurs benchwarmers to double the Dutch lead.
Steven Bergwijn drifted in (as he so often does) from the left-hand side, combining brilliantly with Janssen, before slotting the striker’s intelligent ‘wall pass’ into the far corner.
Now, Bergwijn is almost guaranteed a seat on the plane to Qatar after a stunning start to life at Ajax. Especially when you factor in that he’s scored six goals in his last eight national team appearances too.
And Janssen, sold by Tottenham for a cut-price fee of just £6 million in 2019, could join him in Louis van Gaal’s World Cup roster, continuing his eye-catching resurgence after five years out of the international picture.
Tottenham flop Vincent Janssen could be heading to the World Cup
“The guys who came in did an excellent job,” says Van Dijk, who played the full 90 minutes in Warsaw.
“Vincent held the ball up well up front. Wout (Weghorst) too. I want to do a special shout-out to them. We need everyone (to perform). That is also important for the World Cup.”
Looking back on Janssen’s nomadic career, that ill-fated £17 million move to Tottenham is starting to look more and more like a blot on an otherwise impressive copybook. The well-travelled targetman has claimed Golden Boots in both the Netherlands and Mexico (for AZ Alkmaar and Monterrey respectively), and continues to score goals for fun in his new home.
Janssen has six in just nine Jupiler League games since joining Royal Antwerp in the summer. Now under the stewardship of former Dutch international Mark van Bommel, Antwerp are cruising at the top of the table with nine wins from nine.
“I think he has done insanely well,” says Rafael van der Vaart; the ex-Tottenham star hailing his compatriot’s return to form.
“I am happy with what he has shown today. He keeps the ball, has good technique and we know he can score a goal.”
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