Van Hooijdonk and Afellay lyrical about potential Feyenoord target: ‘Has everything, would get him sooner than Steijn’ | OneFootball

Ibrahim Afellay and Pierre van Hooijdonk are convinced that Luciano Valente would be a great reinforcement for Feyenoord’s midfield. Van Hooijdonk would bring the 21-year-old FC Groningen midfielder to De Kuip sooner than FC Twente’s Sem Steijn, who will have turned many heads at home and abroad as this season Eredivisie’s top scorer.

On the Studio Voetbal panel, Afellay and Van Hooijdonk enjoyed footage of Valente, who once again showed his class against PSV despite the 3-1 home defeat. “You can just see in his reception (of the ball) and the way he moves… He’s just a very good player,” said Afellay.

Should Valente leave Groningen this summer? “Absolutely. These are guys who can only get better,” the former pro believes. “If they start playing with better players and start training more intensively… He’ll go along with that. He’s also playing for Jong Oranje now (after previously appearing for Italy).”

Van Hooijdonk joined in. “If you’re talking about Feyenoord… This is a midfielder who has everything a midfielder should have. And it all has to be better, I know that. But everything a modern midfielder should have… That’s Valente.”

Van Hooijdonk was then asked whether he would bring Valente to De Kuip before Steijn. “Yes, there’s more dynamism in this one.”

“He would definitely be a reinforcement for Feyenoord,” Afellay concluded. “He is still super young. If you profile yourself like that now and play with even better players later… Then you will only get better.”

GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield