Myron Boadu
Bullish, powerful and pacy, with a distinct taste for the jugular, AZ’s 18-year-old striker has proved an irresistible force this season. A youngster with a point to prove and a sporting voice loud enough to make sure it’s heard.
After a terrible run of bad luck with injuries in recent times – he missed much of the 2017-18 campaign with a knee injury and was sidelined for seven months last term with a broken ankle – the teenager is now fit and firing on all cylinders, piling up the goals, creating chances for team-mates and scoring on his Holland debut in November’s 5-0 Euro 2020 qualifying win against Estonia.
For the Amsterdam-born son of a Ghanaian father and Dutch mother, the higher the stakes the better he seems to perform. In this season’s Europa League he has amassed half a dozen goals as well as being a matchwinner in top-ofthe-table Eredivisie clashes, notably netting a brace in a 4-0 win at PSV and scoring the only goal of the game in a precious home victory over Ajax.
At times he appears unstoppable,
“Boadu can come up with a goal at any moment, but you sell him short if you only assess him on goals and assists” AZ coach Arne Slot
always loitering on the shoulder of the last defender, and too strong and quick to derail.
With Boadu putting away chances for kicks, AZ are not only serious contenders for a Champions League berth – they may even have a shot of the Dutch title.
“Boadu can come up with a goal at any moment,” says his AZ coach Arne Slot. “But you sell him short if you only assess him on goals and assists. He works really hard for the team.
“He applies good aggressive pressure when we’re not in possession.”
Incredible to think that several years ago, at the age of 11, he was turned down by Ajax, who invited him for a three-day trial but were not especially impressed. Shortly afterwards, he was offered a place at the AZ academy, where he swiftly developed into a youth-team and then reserve-side starlet.
Ajax, hoping that he had forgotten their snub, would later try to lure him away. Arsenal were also keen. But he preferred to stay loyal to AZ. “I never regretted rejecting those clubs,” he told
magazine. “I knew how good I had it at AZ. Ajax had to convince me. They didn’t succeed.”
Single-minded and self-confident, he took the right option.