Former AZ player Stijn Spierings thought about stopping now he shines between Messi and Mbappé

“I feel great in my skin,” says the cheerful Stijn Spierings from his car. The Toulouse midfielder lives with his family in the southern French city. “When I’m in the car I have some rest, because it’s very busy at home with two children, a dog and a cat.”

Invaded against PSV

A completely different life than on February 13, 2015. When he was allowed to make his first appearance in professional football as a talent from the AZ youth academy. At home against PSV as substitute for Robert Mühren. “I’m from Alkmaar and I still follow AZ. And I’m sorry that I didn’t manage to break through there.” Spierings says with a slight disappointment in his voice. In Alkmaar he came no further than two raids. “Although I believe that everyone has their own path.”

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That path went for Spierings after AZ via Sparta, RKC, Levski Sofia and now Spierings is already working on his third season with Toulouse. “It turned out pretty strange, because I was really unhappy during my time at Sparta. I even thought about quitting. Coach Henk Fraser didn’t see me and I played for Jong Sparta against clubs like Scheveningen, Kozak Boys and Barendrecht. I asked myself wonder what I did it all for. And now I’m playing against stars like Messi, Mbappé and Neymar. That makes me humble at times when I think about how my career has gone.”

Fred Grim

Spierings flourished at his next club RKC. “I am still grateful to this club and also to trainer Fred Grim. He gave me so much confidence, which is extremely important for a footballer.” Then the 26-year-old Alkmaarder surprisingly chose the Bulgarian Levski Sofia. “I like those kinds of adventures. It is such a different country than the Netherlands. And in terms of paying your salary, it was not too bad for me. Except for one month, I got everything. Although there were also players who sometimes played four got nothing for months. Turned out to be normal according to my Bulgarian teammates.”

In the summer of 2020, Spierings made the move from the Bulgarian capital to the fourth largest city in France. First two seasons with Toulouse in Ligue 2 and now at the highest level. With a twelfth place in the ranking, Toulouse is currently doing very well. In addition to Spierings, the Dutchman Branco van den Boomen, Thijs Dallinga and former AZ player Zakaria Aboukhlal are also active at the southern French club. And last night Toulouse won 3-1 in the round of 16 of the Reims cup tournament. “A great result and you notice that it is now starting to come to life. There were more than twenty thousand people in the stadium last night and the final is now slowly coming to an understanding.”

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Messi

In the competition, Toulouse narrowly lost 1-2 to Paris Saint-Germain last weekend. That meant that Spierings fought duels with Lionel Messi. “Look, he walks a lot. But if you see his ball assumptions and his overview, then that is really on a different level.” The Argentinian superstar scored the winning goal half an hour before the end. “You’re just afraid when he has the ball. That he gives a through ball or suddenly starts an action. And then to think that his top years are behind him.”

“My contract expires next summer and I think that’s fine actually,” Spierings says honestly about his football future. The midfielder is enjoying France to the fullest and has not missed a minute this season. Yet new adventures are also starting to tickle again. “Spain, Italy and America appeal to me. As long as it’s safe there. That’s just different with children. Otherwise nothing would have been too crazy for me. All in all, I’m curious what will happen this summer.”