The Italian Seria A season ended on Sunday with Juventus retaining their championship. Michael Bell takes a look at how the Dutchman playing in the Italian top flight fared during the season.
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The injury-plagued midfielder finally returned from a long-term injury back in February, making a 12-minute cameo against Palermo. However, Strootman then spent the next eight games on the bench, only seeing one minute of action as a substitute in a win over Udinese. Finally on the 5th of May, Strootman started for the first time this season and played the full ninety minutes of a win over Genoa. In the final game of the season the midfielder assisted the opening goal in a 3-1 victory at AC Milan and looked back to his dominating best. It’s great to see Strootman back on the pitch and hopefully, he will stay fit during the summer in order to start fresh for next season. A fit again Strootman will be a massive asset to not only Roma but the Netherlands national team as they begin their World Cup qualifiers.
A low-key summer transfer was the arrival in Italy of Heerenveen midfielder Marten de Roon, but the Dutchman has been a revelation in the heart of the Atalanta midfield. His energetic and dominant display’s have made de Roon a fan favourite in Bergamo and he is already being heavily linked with a summer move to Napoli. De Roon has only missed two league games this season due to suspension and is unlucky not to have been named in the latest Netherlands squad. It was an excellent campaign for the 25-year-old.
The 22-year-old was seen as one for the future when he swapped AZ for Lazio in the summer but injury to his fellow Dutchman Stefan de Vrij has seen Hoedt become a regular in the centre of the Roman side’s defence. The youngster made 25 league appearances in his first Serie A campaign and helped his side to a clean sheet in eight of those. Hoedt is another, like De Roon, who is pushing on the door of an international call-up after an impressive campaign.
De Vrij’s season was completely ruined by a knee injury suffered after only two league games. The centre back will be looking to regain full fitness this summer and hit the ground running for Lazio next season. He will be crucial for his club and country.
The full back has spent almost the whole season as a substitute for Lazio, making only five appearances for the club. The 33-year-old will be leaving the club this summer on a free and a return to Netherlands may be on the cards.
Like Hoedt, Kishna was another Dutch youngster who left the Eredivisie to join Lazio in the summer, but the winger has had a frustrating first campaign in Italy. The former Ajax attacker netted on his debut in the Seria A, and also netted in a defeat to AC Milan but they were the high points of a season plagued by two long-term injuries. Kishna has been restricted to eleven league appearances and will be hoping for a more productive campaign next season.
The midfielder finally ended his Napoli exile in January when he signed for Carpi, but has not been a regular for the Serie A strugglers, who have been relegated to Serie B. De Guzman made five appearances for the club scoring once, and is likely to be on the move this summer.
The 29-year-old spent much of the season unattached but signed for Hellas Verona in January. The former Ajax and AC Milan star made eleven appearances for the club but failed to help them escape relegation. Emanuelson’s contract is up in Verona this summer and he will once again be looking for a new club.