Luuk de Jong was considered a multi-million dollar transfer flop at Borussia Mönchengladbach and didn’t leave a lasting impression at Newcastle United either. He only blossomed in Eindhoven – and is currently one of the best attackers in Europe.
Gladbach brought Luuk De Jong from Twente Enschede in 2012 for twelve million euros. The striker became a million-dollar misunderstanding. Six goals in 36 Bundesliga games clearly undercut expectations. Gladbach loaned De Jong to Newcastle United and got him back after twelve appearances without scoring. The English tabloid Daily Mail later named De Jong number 75 among what they consider to be the 100 worst strikers in Premier League history.
Luuk de Jong during his time at Borussia Mönchengladbach
“Really? Even though I only played twelve games and not all of them from the start? And not in my position either?”De Jong asked the Guardian in February when asked about the rankings and said: “Well, that’s the football world.” Such rankings don’t matter to the 33-year-old today. De Jong plays a crucial role in other statistics ahead of the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday (9 p.m. in the ticker and audio stream).
Luuk de Jong in the Newcastle United jersey
Header specialty: “I’ve gotten better”
In 37 competitive games, De Jong has scored 31 goals and assisted 14 goals and is currently one of the best strikers in Europe. In the Honorary Division table, PSV is leading the table with a ten point lead over Feyenoord. In the Champions League, De Jong scored three goals in six games as his team left RC Lens and Sevilla FC behind and reached the round of 16 against Dortmund.
De Jong is particularly successful with headers. “I think the sense of timing is in my genes”said De Jong in the Guardian, referring to his parents’ volleyball careers. “But the whole process of getting to the header, looking for a position, creating space, training exercises with teammates and assessing where and when the cross is coming – that’s something I’ve learned and gotten better at.”
Despite the Europa League triumph, it was also written off too quickly in Spain
De Jong was considered a bad purchase on several occasions. After his guest appearance in Newcastle, he moved from Mönchengladbach back to the Netherlands to PSV Eindhoven in 2014 for five million euros. Gladbach’s loss became a golden opportunity for Eindhoven and PSV. 94 goals in 159 first division games were recorded in the following five seasons, in the very first season he won the first championship with Eindhoven after the club had had to wait seven years. This was followed by a move to Spain, where he moved to Sevilla FC in 2019 for twelve million euros.
There, De Jong experienced his career highlight when he won the Europa League with Sevilla FC and scored two goals in a 3-2 win in the final. That was in Cologne in 2020, when no fans were allowed into the stadium in Cologne-Müngersdorf due to the corona pandemic. In terms of general figures, De Jong also fell short of expectations in Spain in two seasons at Sevilla FC and one on loan at FC Barcelona: he scored 16 goals in 90 games as a statistic in Spain. But once again De Jong was hastily written off.
Luuk de Jong with the Europa League trophy during his time at Sevilla FC
De Jong came back for just three million euros
Since he returned to Eindhoven from Seville in 2023 for just three million euros, De Jong has been turning up the heat. The club won the Dutch Cup in 2023, and now their first championship since 2018 is difficult to take away. PSV has not lost a single game in the league, but has won 22 of 25 games. Eindhoven won all of the first 17 games of the season in the Honor Division. The only two defeats of the season came in the cup against Feyenoord (0-1) and in the first group game of the Champions League at Arsenal (0-4).
The club is benefiting from De Jong’s great form. His current situation was not always apparent throughout his career. He says: “I never gave up. I always worked hard and I think I’m the best version of myself now.”