Jordi Tomasowa27 Oct 2024, 00:03
Last updated: Oct 27, 2024, 12:12 AM
Sparta Rotterdam lost 2-0 on Saturday evening when they visited SC Heerenveen. Captain Nick Olij was very disappointed after the defeat. The goalkeeper was discussed by ESPN‘s analysts in the Grandstand immediately after the match.
Olij extended his contract with Sparta earlier this week until mid-2028. Presenter Jan Joost van Gangelen had actually expected that the 29-year-old closing position would take a step up last summer.
However, a departure from Sparta did not materialize. Mario Been thinks that Olij’s new contract includes a limited transfer fee. “I think he realizes that there are clubs that could be interested in him if a spot becomes available. Olij is simply an excellent goalkeeper.”
“Then I am not saying that he can immediately become the first goalkeeper to the top three in the Netherlands, but it was of course once suggested that he could become the second goalkeeper at Feyenoord if Justin Bijlow were to leave,” Been continues. “That didn’t happen then. I assume Olij is so smart that he included an escape clause in his contract.”
The analyst is then asked by Van Gangelen whether Olij can also be an option as a second goalkeeper in the future for clubs such as Ajax, Feyenoord or PSV. “Certainly. He is definitely a good and reliable goalkeeper. He has also shown that in recent years.”
Yet Been thinks that Olij himself will take longer to think about such a step. “He is now part of the selection of the Dutch national team, which is no longer the case if you become the second goalkeeper at a top club.”
Before the start of Sparta’s match with Heerenveen, Been was also full of praise for Olij: “In my opinion, he is currently the best Dutch goalkeeper in the Eredivisie, who is a basic player. He has an extra quality, because he can use his kick putting fellow players alone in front of the goalkeeper.”
Olij may be able to make the step up next season. Diant Ramaj (Ajax) and Justin Bijlow (Feyenoord) do not seem to want to fill the role of second goalkeeper for another year, while Walter Benítez and Joël Drommel both wanted to leave PSV last summer and ultimately stayed in Eindhoven.
