Many children dream of becoming a professional football player. But only for a limited group does that dream become reality. Niek Schiks recently made his debut at PSV and is the only full-fledged Brabander in the Dutch Juniors selection. How is it possible that the province with the most professional clubs produces so little talent?
From the 24-man selection of the Dutch Juniors, the 22-year-old goalkeeper from Boxmeer is the only one who grew up in Brabant. Sam de Grand (Lommel SK) was born in Den Bosch, but moved to Belgium at a very young age. And while Brabant has the most professional clubs.
He therefore thinks it is a shame that he is the only Brabander in the Oranje promise team. “Those guys from FC Groningen sometimes tease me about my accent. I do have a bit of a soft G, so it’s a shame that I can’t share it with anyone.” Brabant is also represented in the ‘big’ Orange with Cody Gakpo and Virgil van Dijk.
Few people from Brabant at PSV
Armando Obispo and Niek Schiks are the only two Brabanders in PSV’s A-selection. Lately, mainly Belgians have broken through with Noah Fernandez, Nikolas Verkooijen and previously Ismael Saibari and Johan Bakayoko. “Wessel Kühn is another player from the region at Jong PSV who has made his debut in the first team, but that is strange,” the goalkeeper responds.
“If one of the smaller clubs in Brabant has a great talent, he is often bought away by a larger club. Although the step from KKD to the first of PSV is currently quite big,” says Schiks.
“It may sound a bit strange, but PSV is the biggest club in Brabant and it is very difficult to get a job there as a young player,” the goalkeeper explains. He recently made his debut in the first team after Matej Kovár and Nick Olij were injured. “In principle it was only two games, but I am now here with a bit more baggage.”
Transfer
The goalkeeper himself will be faced with a difficult choice this summer. He is now the third goalkeeper at PSV and mainly keeps matches at Jong PSV. Schiks’ contract is still ongoing, but the goalkeeper wants to make minutes at a high level: “It would also be nice for PSV if I could possibly be loaned out. These are discussions that we will have in the coming months.”
He hopes for a step to the Eredivisie. “There are only eighteen spots in the Eredivisie and the top 3 are already missing, so it is not that simple.” Schiks also says he is open to going abroad.
