Thomas ‘on his way to the top’

The sky’s the limit for Ryan Thomas.

That’s the message from the most capped All Whites player, Ivan Vicelich, who said the 23-year-old midfielder could be destined for an even bigger move in the future, despite ranking his latest transfer to Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven as one of New Zealand’s most significant.

Vicelich, who spent much of his professional football career in the Eredivisie, said PSV is a perfect fit for Thomas, a player who has established himself as one of the premier players in the Netherlands.

‘‘I think it’s one of the biggest deals ever by a Kiwi to be honest. What we’re seeing is a guy who is performing really well and he’s now going to a club where if he can continue to perform at the level he did at PEC Zwolle then he’s really on the way to another potential step to an even bigger club in Europe,’’ Vicelich said.

PEC revealed last week that the club had reached an agreement to sell Thomas to PSV – a move understood to be worth €3million (NZ$5.17M).

Although that transfer is dwarfed by Chris Wood’s £15million (NZ$29M) move to Premier League club Burnley, Vicelich said it was ‘‘recognition that Ryan is on his way to the top.’’

‘‘It’s up there with what the other guys are doing. But I think he’s on the pathway to match what Chris Wood and Winston [Reid] have done and it’s a great reward for his efforts,’’ he said.

‘‘He’s at an age now where he’s got a lot of football in front of him. The transfer is really great for the guy and one thing I’m really impressed with is that Ryan is so down to earth. He’s hard working but off the field he’s a very good guy and just gets on with life. It doesn’t go to his head and that’s a real positive thing.’’

After completing his medical and putting pen to paper on a three-year deal, Thomas was officially unveiled by PSV yesterday.

He said he was excited to begin the next chapter in his professional career, after spending the past five seasons with PEC.

"For a player from PEC to come to PSV is great,’’ Thomas said. ‘‘The intensity, the level is a lot higher than PEC. You have to fight for your place every day and that’s what I’m looking forward to most.’’