After smashing 19 goals across 18 Eredivisie appearances so far this campaign, Feyenoord striker, Santiago Giménez is continuing to prove himself as one of Europe’s next brightest stars.
By Nathan Evans
As a result, some of the biggest clubs on the continent are now said to be tracking him with increased interest, including Premier League sides such as Arsenal, Tottenham, and Manchester United. But is the Mexican maestro ready for a move to one of Europe’s elite teams in the near future? We take a look below.
Starting out in Mexico (he was born in Argentina) with top-flight side Cruz Azul, from the very outset Giménez was labelled as one of the club’s biggest prospects. His professional debut came back in August 2017, but despite his early promise, it wouldn’t be until February 2020 when he would finally score for the first time in Liga MX.
His return of 22 goals across 88 appearances for his boyhood club came alongside a first league championship in May 2021 as the young striker helped his side to end a 24 year league title drought. The following August, he’d go on to be named Liga MX Player of the Month for the first time, before then winning it again the month after.
That subsequently proved to be enough for Dutch side Feyenoord to come calling, and for a fee of just €6million, he joined up with his new teammates in late July 2022. From that point, Giménez has developed into one of the most clinical forwards in Europe’s top ten leagues and now with plenty of interest supposedly surrounding him, the reigning Dutch champions could be set for an almighty windfall, if and when they cash in.
Simply put, Giménez is a purebred striker, a bullish forward who loves to operate as a ‘fox-in-the-box’ with killer instinct in front of goal. He’s exactly the sort of striker who never gives the opposition’s defence a second to think, constantly keeping them busy whether with the ball at his feet or out of possession. Alongside his goalscoring, he possesses great positioning and is brilliant at making off the ball runs to great effect, either to find space behind the defensive line or to make space for his teammates.
Starting with his most impressive skill, his finishing, it’s safe to say that few strikers across Europe’s top ten leagues are having a better 2023/24 season than the Mexican international.
As mentioned before, Giménez is the type of striker who loves to lurk inside the box with his elite anticipation skills seeing him find space at key times in order to net for his side. With just one of his goals coming from outside the penalty area this campaign in the Eredivisie, the 22-year-old has returned 19 goals from an xG rate of 15.91, highlighting his impressive finishing skills that have also seen him rack up one of Europe’s best conversation rates in the process.
That’s because his 19 league goals have come from just 35 shots on target and 75 shots in total – giving him the fifth best conversion rate of any player with more than five goals in one of Europe’s top ten leagues this season. Interestingly, his shot total overall is the most of any striker in a similar league too, showcasing how Giménez instinctively shoots at goal when in a position to do so, whilst his 153 touches in the opposition’s box – the most of any player in the Eredivisie – highlight his know-how of where best to be in the penalty area.
There’s plenty of other parts to his game which make the former Cruz Azul youngster one of Europe’s most desirable players too.
Although Giménez has averaged just 10.62 successful passes per 90 in the league, for an out-and-out striker his overall link up play is relatively strong. This campaign in the Dutch top-flight for instance, he’s recorded four assists from an xA rate of 2.35 – both figures putting him in the top 15% of all strikers in similar leagues. That’s due to his strong hold up play both with the ball at his feet and when challenging defenders in the air, whilst his impressive vision means that he can play both short, yet effective passes but also complete the longer balls out wide when needed.
There’s also Giménez’s stunning range of off-the-ball movement which in truth, gives him the edge over most strikers currently plying their trade on the continent. As previously stated, the Mexican striker is selfless in his movement, either making diagonal runs to find space for himself or to create room for his teammates to thrive in. He can also seamlessly mix up his play which keeps the opposition second guessing throughout matches, either dropping deep to receive the ball or make penetrative darts through the defensive line which very much compliments and suits Feyenoord’s current style of play. Additionally, his intelligence allows him to use his body to great effect in drawing fouls from opposition players, as referenced by his 31 fouls won in the league, two of which resulting in penalties.
His off-the-ball work that he undertakes when out of possession additionally remains a step above other strikers at his level. Such is his high work-rate and effective pressing qualities, he ranks in the top five percent of all forwards in similar leagues for winning possession in the final third this season (17). His 42 ball recoveries in total also rank him amongst the top ten percent in his position, whilst his 77 duels won overall highlight his hard-working approach in matches both to make key contributions in attack, but to additionally help his team from a defensive standpoint – something which remains a much sought after quality in a forward at the highest level in modern football.
Due to his all-round ability and his specialised finishing capabilities in particular, Feyenoord’s Santiago Giménez will be a much sought after player in the coming years. Whether he moves this winter remains unknown, but if he doesn’t, expect an almighty battle to commence in the summer as some of Europe’s biggest sides look to obtain his signature.
(Images from IMAGO)
You can follow every Feyenoord game on FotMob. Download the free app here.