Why Southampton must move to sign Joey Veerman
According to Voetbal International (h/t Hampshire Live), Southampton are looking to bring in Joey Veerman of SC Heerenveen.
The report says that the Saints are hoping to make a late move for the Dutch midfielder in the ongoing transfer window and have sent scouts to watch him play.
Profile
Joey Veerman is a 21-year-old Dutch midfielder who plays for SC Heerenveen. He started his youth career at RKAV Volendam in 2003 and moved to FC Volendam two years later. The midfielder spent the next few seasons progressing through the youth teams.
He was finally promoted to the senior side in 2016. In 3 seasons for the club, he played 81 games, scoring and assisting 12 goals each. SC Heerenveen signed him last season and he has been a solid performer for them so far. In 29 appearances, he scored 7 goals and assisted another 6. (h/t Transfermarkt)
Veerman has one appearance so far for the Netherlands U-19 team and is yet to be called up to the senior team.
Do Southampton need him?
With the departures of Mario Lemina, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Harrison Reed, the club are left with just 4 central midfielders in the whole squad. So bringing in a new midfielder is a must for Ralph Hasenhuttl before the window closes.
More than anyone it’s the absence of Hojbjerg that is likely to hurt the club. The Danish midfielder was one of their best players in the last few seasons. He was their midfield enforcer and now without him, the centre of the park lacks bite and steel.
Also, the club have just one recognised defensive midfielder in Oriol Romeu. They clearly look light in the middle of the park, especially on the defensive side. Thus, bringing in Veerman would be the right move for the Saints.
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Verdict
At just 21 years of age, Veerman has shown tremendous potential in the Eredivisie. Capable of playing as a defensive midfielder as well as central midfielder, he is very versatile and can be an ideal replacement for Hojbjerg.
Add to that his knack of popping up with goals and assists, and the Saints would have a well rounded midfielder at their disposal. Veerman will be a solid buy for Southampton if they can get the deal over the line. He is a multi-faceted midfielder who can do almost everything. From the looks of it, Southampton surely need Joey Veerman.
