Only seven players have more goals than Justin Kluivert in the Premier League this season.
By Sam McGuire
The 25-year-old netted his second hat-trick of the season last weekend as Bournemouth romped to a 4-1 win over Newcastle United at St James’ Park. It took his tally to 10 for the season (six coming from the penalty spot). He also chipped in with an assist against the Magpies to make it 13 goal involvements in 1,363 minutes this term in the English top-flight.
He’s on course to have the most productive season of his career, finally surpassing 15 goal involvements he managed for Ajax back during the 2017/18 campaign. It feels as though the Dutch attacker is finally fulfilling his potential. It’s taken a while, hasn’t it?
Kluivert burst onto the scene with his boyhood club, Ajax, as a 17-year-old. After impressing for the Dutch side, he was linked with a move to the Premier League. Pictured speaking to Manchester United boss José Mourinho following the Europa League final loss in 2017, there felt like an inevitability that he’d join the Red Devils. After all, his father, Patrick, worked alongside Mourinho at Barcelona.
A move never materialised, however, and he went on to have an impressive second season in the Ajax first-team.
In early 2018, Kluivert was asked about his future again by Dutch publication Helden.
“England appeals to me. Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea or Manchester United are nice clubs where I can see myself playing in a few years’ time.” He added that Barcelona are also in his “heart” due to his father’s links there.
Roma, to the surprise of many, won the race to sign the versatile forward in the summer of 2018.
Kluivert senior gave his thoughts on the deal, saying: “I think United would have been too big a jump,” the Netherlands, Ajax, AC Milan and Barcelona legend told Gazzetta dello Sport.
“Roma are an important club but the pressures are less. Roma don’t have to win at any cost and it is a club that is used to good football. It is the ideal place for Justin right now. He doesn’t talk much, but he’s someone who knows how to listen and is motivated. I wanted him to stay at Ajax for another year, but he made his choice.”
Reports claim Francesco Totti was involved in convincing Kluivert to move to the Italian capital.
It didn’t necessarily work out for him in Rome, though.
He finished his debut season with the club with just one Serie A goal. His second season was a little better, he finished with four goals, but he didn’t go enough to convince the club he had a future there. He was loaned to RB Leipzig for the 2020/21 campaign. Then Nice brought him to the club on an interim basis for the 2021/22 season. Valencia swooped for him in the summer of 2022, bringing him to the Mestalla on a season-long loan after a work permit issue shelved plans to move to Fulham.
Each loan spell had varying degrees of success. But all had the same outcome – he didn’t do enough to convince the club to sign him permanently.
It looked as though he might be a set for a career of purgatory. Moving from club to club, living off of the Kluivert name.
But then Bournemouth made their move. The winger was the first signing of the Andoni Iraola era. It caught a lot of people off guard. The Cherries were expected to be in a relegation battle. Signing someone like Kluivert wasn’t on the cards.
Yet it has proven to be a masterstroke. He’s been given a home. He’s been given the responsibility in this team. And he’s delivered.
His first season with the club yielded seven goals and an assist as Bournemouth caught the eye with a 12th place finish. This season, he’s built on those foundations.
The Cherries are currently seventh in the table. They’ve beaten Manchester United, Manchester City, Newcastle and Arsenal this season. They held Chelsea to a draw at Stamford Bridge. At the time of writing this, they’re just one point off fourth in the Premier League.
Kluivert has played his part in a number of these scalps. He was involved in all four goals against Newcastle. He scored against Chelsea and Manchester United. He scored and assisted against Arsenal.
He is Bournemouth’s leading scorer in the Premier League and only two players – Marcus Tavernier and Dango Ouattara (both on four) have more assists than the Netherlands international.
The Cherries are flying high under Iraola and Kluivert is the face of this current project. If he keeps on performing at this level, he might get a move to one of the four English clubs he mentioned back in 2018.
But why would you want to leave Bournemouth right now, they’re one of the most exciting teams in the Premier League with one of the best managers at the helm.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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