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European Hot Shots: Feyenoord’s Santiago Gimenez

European Hot Shots: Feyenoord’s Santiago Gimenez

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The pressure was on Santiago Giménez this season. The 22-year-old caught the eye during his debut campaign with Feyenoord following his move from Mexican side Cruz Azul. He scored 15 goals and chipped in with two assists across 1,925 Eredivisie minutes as Arne Slot’s side shocked the masses to claim the title. 

By Sam McGuire, Premier League expert

At the time, Giménez was an unknown quantity in Europe. He perhaps benefited from this and people wondered whether he would be able to replicate his 2022/23 campaign. After all, second-season syndrome is very real. 

Countless players over the years have had one breakout year before struggling to repeat that success before fading into obscurity. Once teams are familiar with their style and play, they are much easier to limit. 

This could’ve been the case with Giménez. 

Safe to say he has put to bed any doubts though. 

The Argentine-born Mexico international has remarkably scaled up his output this time around. It is little wonder he is now reportedly being tracked by Premier League giants with Arsenal, Spurs, Manchester United and Chelsea all keen on the €50million-rated attacker. 

Giménez has 21 goals and four assists in 25 matches for Feyenoord in the Dutch top-flight this term. It is unlikely that Slot’s men will retain their title, they are currently 10 points off of leaders PSV, but they’ve still had a strong season with their No29 as the spearhead. For example, the 22-year-old scored a hat-trick and assisted another in the 4-0 destruction of Ajax in Amsterdam earlier in the campaign. 

He also holds the record for most goals scored in the Eredivisie in a calendar year with 31. This is quite the achievement when you consider how many legendary goalscorers have spent time in the Dutch league over the years. 

What is the secret behind his success as a goalscorer? Well, the left-footer possesses a trait that so few young attackers have in the modern game. 

The 6ft forward is a consistent shooter. While that sounds fairly basic and extremely straightforward, you would be surprised at how erratic strikers who are still honing their craft can be. They can get frustrated and lose focus. This can then impact their decision-making and you then start to see poor shot choices. 

Giménez, generally speaking, doesn’t suffer from this. 

As you can see in his shot map (above), he’s taken only a handful of efforts from outside of the penalty area this season in the Eredivisie. In fact, just 12.9% of his 93 attempts have come from outside of the box and two of those are on the edge. If we wanted to be generous and include those, the total drops to just 10.7%. 

Now, for an attacker averaging a high number of attempts per 90 (4.09 to be exact), it is rare that such a high number of them are coming from high-value areas. It highlights the fact Giménez is a reliable, sustainable goal threat. 

Last season, he averaged a similar number of attempts (4.02), but his Expected Goals average has jumped from 0.69 during the 2022/23 season to 0.88 this term. This subtle tweak to where he’s shooting from has allowed him to increase his goal return. For context, last season, 14% of his attempts arrived from outside the 18-yard box. It might not seem like a drastic change but, simply put, more shots in the box increases the likelihood of more goals being scored and this is what we’re witnessing. 

Giménez has developed, not just physically during his sole season in Europe but mentally, and this is why we’re now seeing him make smarter choices with the ball. He’s no one-season wonder and his playing profile – a high-volume shooter from good areas – makes it likely that he will be a goal threat no matter where he’s playing. This second season is more informative than his first and if he had a queue of admirers last summer, it is going to swell this time around. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every match Feyenoord game live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage and player ratings. Download the free app here.

European Hot Shots: Feyenoord’s Santiago Gimenez

The pressure was on Santiago Giménez this season. The 22-year-old caught the eye during his debut campaign with Feyenoord following his move from Mexican side Cruz Azul. He scored 15 goals and chipped in with two assists across 1,925 Eredivisie minutes as Arne Slot’s side shocked the masses to claim the title. 

By Sam McGuire, Premier League expert

At the time, Giménez was an unknown quantity in Europe. He perhaps benefited from this and people wondered whether he would be able to replicate his 2022/23 campaign. After all, second-season syndrome is very real. 

Countless players over the years have had one breakout year before struggling to repeat that success before fading into obscurity. Once teams are familiar with their style and play, they are much easier to limit. 

This could’ve been the case with Giménez. 

Safe to say he has put to bed any doubts though. 

The Argentine-born Mexico international has remarkably scaled up his output this time around. It is little wonder he is now reportedly being tracked by Premier League giants with Arsenal, Spurs, Manchester United and Chelsea all keen on the €50million-rated attacker. 

Giménez has 21 goals and four assists in 25 matches for Feyenoord in the Dutch top-flight this term. It is unlikely that Slot’s men will retain their title, they are currently 10 points off of leaders PSV, but they’ve still had a strong season with their No29 as the spearhead. For example, the 22-year-old scored a hat-trick and assisted another in the 4-0 destruction of Ajax in Amsterdam earlier in the campaign. 

He also holds the record for most goals scored in the Eredivisie in a calendar year with 31. This is quite the achievement when you consider how many legendary goalscorers have spent time in the Dutch league over the years. 

What is the secret behind his success as a goalscorer? Well, the left-footer possesses a trait that so few young attackers have in the modern game. 

The 6ft forward is a consistent shooter. While that sounds fairly basic and extremely straightforward, you would be surprised at how erratic strikers who are still honing their craft can be. They can get frustrated and lose focus. This can then impact their decision-making and you then start to see poor shot choices. 

Giménez, generally speaking, doesn’t suffer from this. 

As you can see in his shot map (above), he’s taken only a handful of efforts from outside of the penalty area this season in the Eredivisie. In fact, just 12.9% of his 93 attempts have come from outside of the box and two of those are on the edge. If we wanted to be generous and include those, the total drops to just 10.7%. 

Now, for an attacker averaging a high number of attempts per 90 (4.09 to be exact), it is rare that such a high number of them are coming from high-value areas. It highlights the fact Giménez is a reliable, sustainable goal threat. 

Last season, he averaged a similar number of attempts (4.02), but his Expected Goals average has jumped from 0.69 during the 2022/23 season to 0.88 this term. This subtle tweak to where he’s shooting from has allowed him to increase his goal return. For context, last season, 14% of his attempts arrived from outside the 18-yard box. It might not seem like a drastic change but, simply put, more shots in the box increases the likelihood of more goals being scored and this is what we’re witnessing. 

Giménez has developed, not just physically during his sole season in Europe but mentally, and this is why we’re now seeing him make smarter choices with the ball. He’s no one-season wonder and his playing profile – a high-volume shooter from good areas – makes it likely that he will be a goal threat no matter where he’s playing. This second season is more informative than his first and if he had a queue of admirers last summer, it is going to swell this time around. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every match Feyenoord game live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage and player ratings. Download the free app here.