“Van the Man” Makes Potentially Career Shattering Move

 

 

I have had a few days to mull this over… and I still cannot believe that Ruud van Nistelrooy has opted to join German club Hamburg SV, instead of bowing to one of his many potential suitors in England. In doing so he may just have sealed his fate as another past-his prime striker, doomed to finish out his career shrouded in the anonymity of sub-par football league play. 

 

Lets look at the facts. ‘Van the Man’ was once one of the most prolific strikers in Europe, scoring goals by the bucketful for PSV Eindhoven, Manchester United and, most recently, with Real Madrid with a grand total of 266 goals in 433 league and cup appearances. Moreover, he is one of the highest goal scorers in UEFA Champion’s League history with an amazing 60 tallies in 81 appearances. Unfortunately of late, he has become collateral damage in a Real Madrid team that has been completely reshaped following the return of club president Florentino Perez. The signings of superstars Kaka, Ronaldo and Benzema in the off season, as well as the development of Gonzalo Higuain in conjunction with the ever present, and hardly fading, heroic talent of Raul has made the Dutchman ‘expendable’. As such he has only touched the pitch once this season with the Galacticos… though he managed to score in doing so. 

Can 'Van The Man' Recapture The Magic?

Which brings us to the January transfer window. Through the early part of the month van Nistelrooy was linked most heavily with a potential move to Stoke FC, a move that would have been an absolute coup for the plucky ‘Midlands’ team. As the window progressed, massive interest was expressed by both Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, though the Hammer’s were clearly the more determined, offering up a potential 100,000 GBP per week for the striker’s services. In the end though, following advice from fellow Oranje teammate Rafael van der Vaart, van Nistelrooy decided that Germany would be the most appropriate location for the star to recapture his former glory and ply his trade.Ruud, Ruud, Ruud… what were you thinking? If you honestly believe you have a chance at capturing a spot on the international squad selected for world cup play in South Africa, joining a club at the top of the Bundesliga is not the way to go about it. 

Hamburg currently sits 5^th in the Bundesliga with 34 points, 7 points behind league leaders Leverkusen who are on 41. Their goal difference is +16 (Third best in Germany) and is due mainly to the fact that the team’s strikers and attacking midfielders have been having fairly strong campaigns. Although no single player has set any records, young Peruvian striker Jose Guerrero has 4 goals in 4 appearances, Croatian forward Mladen Petric has 7, Swede Marcus Berg has 9, Brazilian midfielder Ze Roberto has 5 and German Midfielder Piotr Trochowski has 7 through the halfway point of the season. With the exception of Ze Roberto, all are younger than van Nistelrooy, and all are enjoying some of their most productive campaigns to date. Moreover… they are playing well together, and they are winning. I think that it is fairly obvious that Hamburg will be looking to get the Dutchman into the action sooner rather than later, but should he falter… or start slowly, would a team that is looking to win the Bundesliga keep him in the starting XI, or would they place him on the bench in favour of returning to a tried and tested rotation. Clearly they are looking for the missing piece that will put them over the edge, though its tough to say if he can be that piece unless is the ultimate focal point of their attack. 

 

Conversely, let’s look at the English options. Love it or hate it… Premier League play (along with La Liga in Spain) is still tops in the world, and is exactly where the Dutchman should have headed to prove himself to Netherlands head coach Bert van Marwijk.First up, Tottenham. Spurs are having a great season thus far. Manager Harry ‘Houdini’ Redknapp has shaped his boys into a formidable squad and they have moved into 4^th in the Premier League table. Between Jermain Defoe, Robbie Keane, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Aaron Lennon, Peter Crouch, Niko Kranjcar, Gareth Bale and ( the oft injured) Luka Modric, this spurs team is packed with talent, and the addition of van Nistelrooy would only help their cause. However, Im not 100% sure it would help his. With so many goal-scoring options and target men in the fold, it would be hard to contemplate how much playing time the Dutch striker would receive at White Hart Lane. 

Second on the Bill – Stoke City FC. Massive heart, Solid fan base… decent football. No Stoke was certainly not the most glamorous option for van Nistelrooy, though it probably would have been one of the better ones. Stoke is having a fine season, once again clearly out of a relegation battle, nestled safely within striking distance of a top 10 finish in England’s top tier. However, they have had goal scoring difficulties with only 19 goals from 21 matches… hardly what you would call a ‘potent’ attack. That being said, they lack a true target-man. Dave Kitson is having a ‘blah’ season at best and even Tuncay is not finding the back of the net the way he should. Brining on a striker of van Nistelrooy’s caliber could totally redefine the squad in the eyes of the other Premier League teams, and would certainly showcase the Dutchman… as he would likely score more the rest of the season than the rest of the team… combined. That would catch the attention of the Netherlands team selection committee, wouldn’t it? 

Last, West Ham United. The Hammers were ready to throw down 100,000 pounds for a striker that they were going to toss right into the action. West Ham are currently in a bad way as they are 5 points from the bottom of the table, and sinking fast. However, they have scored 28 goals on the season which shows that this Gianfranco Zola managed team loves to run and gun… exactly the way that van Nistelrooy likes it. Playing for West Ham places van Nistelrooy with a relatively high scoring team that is playing for their Premier League lives. Had he selected to play with the East London outfit, and succeeded in turning around their season (single handedly I would not hesitate to add) imagine the stir he would create back home in the Netherlands.

Any way you slice it, van Nistelrooy had to take up with a squad that was ‘less respected’ than Real Madrid. Moving away from The Bernabeu to Upton Park, Britannia Stadium or even to the Nordbank Arena is a step down for the former superstar. However, had the Dutchman decided on England over Germany, I believe that he would have had a better chance at recapturing the magic that was once “Van the Man”.