'A blend between Kane & Son' - Why Arsenal, Madrid & Chelsea want €50m Santiago Gimenez

Sam McGuire

• 4 Oct 2023 16:45 BST
• 5 min read

Shopping in the Eredivisie is a dangerous game. For every Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Christian Eriksen and Luis Suarez there is an Afonso Alves, Mateja Kezman or an Antony. But if clubs do their research and know exactly what they are buying, the Dutch league is not a risk at all.

That is why the queue slowing forming for Santiago Gimenez should not come as a surprise to anyone. The 22-year-old has been a revelation for Feyenoord following his 2022 summer transfer, firing them to the Eredivisie title last season with 15 goals and two assists in his 21 starts (1,926 minutes).

He’s kicked off this campaign on a hot streak too, netting 10 times and chipping in with two assists in just seven starts (551 minutes). This includes a hat-trick against fierce rivals Ajax in Amsterdam. He also set-up the other goal in the emphatic 4-0 win.

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Gimenez penned a new deal with the Eredivisie champions in August despite interest from Benfica. The Portuguese giants wanted a replacement for the Paris Saint-Germain-bound Goncalo Ramos and identified the left-footed forward as the man to lead their line. However, he resisted the move but the expectation is he will leave the Dutch club at the end of the current campaign. He is focused on the present though, as he highlighted to club media following his contract extension.

"I am grateful to Feyenoord for the confidence that this contract extension expresses," he said.

"The club helped me in every possible way to make sure my adjustment went well when I came to Rotterdam. Thanks to the help of the trainers and my fellow players, I had a great first season. With supporters who always give me an incredible amount of energy. With that, I am really living my dream at the moment and I am more than looking forward to the coming season and our new challenges.”

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Dutch journalist Martijn Krabbendam recently said: “There was already a lot of interest in him [Gimenez] last summer and they signed Ayase Ueda for €9 million. That will simply be the striker next year. They will try to ensure that Giménez becomes the record transfer."

Gimenez has a top-end Estimated Transfer Value of €21.9 million but recent reports in Spain claim Feyenoord want closer to €50m for their in-form striker. The same report suggests Real Madrid are keeping tabs on the 20-cap international as they look for a long-term successor to Karim Benzema. The French forward left in the summer and Los Blancos only have one real established striker on their books in Joselu, and he was brought in primarily as a back-up.

They aren’t the only team interested in the 6ft attacker though. Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal are all believed to be keeping tabs on the prolific marksman.

Chelsea are after a reliable goalscorer with Nicolas Jackson struggling for consistency in the penalty area following his move from Villarreal in the summer. Armando Broja scored against Fulham having started in place of the suspended Jackson but reports claim manager Mauricio Pochettino wants more of a sure thing spearheading his attack and Gimenez could well fall into that category.

Spurs are in the market for a striker having sold Harry Kane. The Feyenoord man does drop deep and link play in a similar way to Kane but he’s probably a little more selfless. For Feyenoord, he can be found helping out in the defensive third, for example. He probably is a blend of Kane and Heung-Min Son, which could well suit Ange Postecoglou and his tactics.

Arsenal seemingly want more of a potent striker sandwiched between Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka. Gabriel Jesus’ streaky finishing plagued him at Manchester City and there have been glimpses of it following his move to the Emirates. He’s currently playing as a wide forward in place of his injured compatriot, Martinelli. Eddie Nketiah is one of the best back-up strikers in the Premier League but he’s not at the level required to have a starring role. Gimenez coming in would change the entire dynamic and provide depth in attack for the title hopefuls.

The Feyenoord No29 is an elite chance-getter who is deceptively good in possession. He sounds like an ideal centre-forward for a number of teams and interest in him will only increase if his early-season form continues.