NEWCASTLE United’s summer transfer business took another big stride yesterday with the signing of Lille defender Sven Botman after weeks of negotiations.
The Magpies made their breakthrough before the weekend fending off competition from AC Milan to secure Botman who was on Tyneside yesterday to complete his medical. The move is expected to cost around £39 million and he signs a five-year contract.
In a statement, the club says that the ‘formalities are set to be concluded this week’ where he will be officially confirmed as a Newcastle United player.
The transfer saga has dragged on for months but Eddie Howe and his new look Newcastle squad have another promising acquisition on their hands. The future looks bright and the club are riding the crest of a wave after last season’s strong form in 2022. What sort of signing is Sven Botman going to be?
He is considered to be a complete defender
Newcastle United have been working hard on recruitment as they look to build on plans of becoming one of the biggest football teams in the world. Signing the likes of Botman could be considered as outstanding business with a big future in the game predicted for the Dutch defender.
Botman is comfortable with passing out from the back despite his six foot five inch stature and was considered one of the most progressive passers in the French Ligue 1 with Lille, both short and long.
He looks comfortable in possession which will no doubt have been coached into him as a youngster at Ajax.
Newcastle are hopeful he could become one of the best defenders in the world
According to Telegraph Sport, head coach Eddie Howe spent hours watching the player to do his own diligence after being recommended Botman by chief scout Steve Nickson.
After failed attempts to lure the Dutchman to the club in January, they were not prepared to give up on losing his potential in the summer.
The expectation is that he will not have an immediate impact on the team and will, instead, be integrated into the fold with Dan Burn and Fabian Schar seemingly manning the defensive fort for the club. Botman and Burn fit a similar mould being a tall left side central defender that is comfortable with the ball, one of the many reasons they opted to sign Burn from Brighton in January after unsuccessful talks with Lille for Botman.
However, his development from the French game to the English game will be crucial. The Magpies will be prepared to take their time.
Despite coming through their academy, he never played a game for Ajax
Ajax’s world renowned academy speaks for itself having produced some of the greatest talent to have ever played the game. However, the usually scenario is that their protegees have some game time with the first-team. This wasn’t the case for Botman.
Having developed under the stewardship of current academy manager Said Ouaali, he never played a game for Ajax and instead found first-team football during a loan spell with fellow Dutch side Herenveen. It was here where, as a teenager, he caught the eye and prompted Lille to pay a fee of around £7.2 million for his services.
He’s been compared to Virgil Van Djik
Botman may well have caught the eye but he has a long way to go to be considered in the same bracket at the £75 million defender.
The Liverpool centre half Van Djik is considered to be one of the best defenders in the world. Because of his abilities, Van Djik is one of a number of defenders currently consigning Botman to a place in the Netherlands Under-21 squad.
Dutch journalist Marcel van de Kraan has been quick to point out the similarities between the two defenders.
“(Van Djik) almost came from nowhere” he said. “Went abroad to Celtic, then to Liverpool and we all know where he is. I really do hope for Sven that he can do something similar. He has got the physical presence and everything is really looking great for him.”
Botman chose football over field hockey
His brother and his dad were avid lovers of hockey. According to LifeBlogger, his parents attempted to convince him to take up the sport. He trained for both hockey and football but decided to take up the latter.
He grew up in a town in Northern Holland called Badhoevedorp where hockey was a hugely popular sport. What could have been for the 22-year-old who took his first steps out onto the St James’ Park turf yesterday.
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