Talentscout

“He is the type of striker you don’t often see today: big, athletic but technically very accomplished” Jochen Sauer, Bayern head of youth development

In a sentence

Eighteen-year-old Dutch supersub who sprung out of the Bayern shadows late last year, scoring with his very first touch on his Bundesliga debut, against Freiburg, and repeating the exact same trick a few days later, against Wolfsburg.

What they say...

Former Schalke and Holland centreforward Youri Mulder: “This kid has a massive career in front of him. He’s a serious talent. He has the perfect build for a striker, a nose for goals and, what’s more, he can really play. In short, he’s a fantastic footballer”

Jochen Sauer, Bayern Munich’s head of youth development: “He is the type of striker you don’t often see today: big, athletic but technically very accomplished too. He’s just completed his first short steps on the road to becoming a professional. He has to carry on working hard. If he does that, I wouldn’t put it past him making at Bayern”

The story so far

Born in the Dutch town of Schiedam, near Rotterdam, as a schoolboy he played for local clubs VV Hekelingen and Spartaan ’20, then spent three years in the junior ranks at Den Haag prior to featuring in the youth team at Feyenoord.

Scouted by many top European sides, including Arsenal and Manchester United, he came close to signing for Everton, only to eventually join Bayern Munich on turning 16.

After impressing for Bayern’s youth and reserve sides he travelled to the USA with the senior squad on their 2018 pre-season tour, scoring in his first game, against Paris Saint-Germain.

A Holland under-19 international, he was to the fore in last season’s UEFA Youth League with four goals in six starts before making his competitive first-team debut for Bayern in December, coming off the bench a few minutes from the end of a 3-1 Champions League win over Tottenham Hotspur. The following week came his heroics to help defeat Freiburg and Wolfsburg.

The next step

Bayern intend to take it nice and gently with him for the moment, with a mixed diet of senior-side bench-warming and competitive action with the club’s reserves, who play in the German third tier. While unlikely to use him as a starter with the first XI, they will have no hesitation in deploying him as a last-gasp impact sub. The word is that next season he will be the official understudy to main striker Robert Lewandowski, with an increased amount of game time.

Strengths

His aerial ability, physical presence, comfort on the ball and a good turn of pace. He is ravenous in his pursuit of goals and displays ice-cold finishing.

Weaknesses

Can be hot-headed and has been sent off on more than one occasion with Bayern’s youngsters. More movement would not go amiss.