Here is the Football-Oranje young Eredivisie team of the season consisting of the talents aged 22 or under that shone during the campaign.

 

Goalkeeper: Andre Onana (Ajax)

The Cameroon international proved why he is regarded as one of the most highly rated young goalkeepers in Europe with another solid campaign for Ajax. The 22-year-old conceded 32 goals in 33 Eredivisie appearances while keeping 12 clean sheets.

Passionate, a great shot stopper and good with his feet, Ajax will struggle to replace Onana if he gets the move away that he wants this summer.

Right-Back: Denzel Dumfries (Heerenveen)

The Netherlands U21 international made the step from Sparta Rotterdam to Heerenveen last summer and his game has gone from strength to strength.

The 22-year-old started the season in sensational form with five assists in the opening four games and although he would only add three more for the rest of the campaign, he remained a constant outlet for the Heerenveen attack and reliable at the back.

PSV Eindhoven have been impressed by what they saw and have made Dumfries a top target for this summer.

Left-Back: Angelino (NAC Breda)

NAC Breda’s partnership with Manchester City helped them maintain their Eredivisie status this season with Angelino easily the pick of the loanee’s.

The 21-year-old Spaniard excelled at left-back throughout the campaign, contributing three league goals and six assists, while earning rave reviews from Dutch journalists.

His form has convinced PSV to make a move to sign him permanently from Manchester City this summer.

Centre-Back: Matthijs de Ligt (Ajax)

The Ajax sensation followed up his breakthrough campaign with another excellent season and is undoubtedly the best centre-back in the Eredivisie, despite only being 18.

Strong in the tackle, excellent on the ball and a leader on the pitch, De Ligt ended the season with the captain’s armband and was named the club’s young player of the year. He also won his place back in the Dutch national team squad and excelled during Netherlands recent 3-0 win over Portugal.

Sadly for Ajax fans, De Ligt has indicated that he wants to leave Amsterdam this summer with all Europe’s biggest club’s scrambling for the defenders signature.

Centre-Back: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)

A revelation for Ajax this season, Michiel Keizer struggled to find a place for De Jong in the midfield and eventually decided to put the 21-year-old alongside De LigtĀ in the centre of defence. It proved to be a masterstroke with De Jong excelling when picking the ball up at the back and using his excellent drive, vision and dribbling ability to push Ajax forward.

De Jong contributed eight assists before an injury robbed new head coach Erik ten Hag of the youngster for the last few months of the season.

Although he didn’t look out of place in defence, De Jong is still a midfielder and wants to play in his prefered position next season. Barcelona are said to be big fans of the former Willem II talent and see him as a perfect replacement for Sergio Busquets.

Midfielder: Guus Til (AZ)

AZ Alkmaar had an excellent campaign, which saw them finish third and reach the KNVB Cup final. John van den Brom’s side had a number of outstanding performers with 20-year-old midfielder Guus Til one that stood out.

The attacking midfielder contributed 11 goals and four assists throughout the campaign, which earned the youngster his first cap for the Dutch national team.

A similar type of player to Davy Klaassen, Til comes alive around the box and his link-up play with Alireza Jahanbaksh and Wout Weghorst was a big reason for the club’s success.

Midfielder: Donny van de Beek (Ajax)

Van de Beek went into the season needing to fill the void that was left by Davy Klaassen and the 21-year-old did a great job, contributing eleven goals and six assists as he featured in every league game for Ajax.

The box-to-box midfielder has become undroppable in the Amsterdam club’s midfield and is now a regular for the Dutch national team with three caps.

An excellent breakthrough campaign for Van de Beek, who looks like a top prospect not only for Ajax but Netherlands going forward.

Midfielder: Mason Mount (Vitesse)

Vitesse’s partnership with Chelsea has been hit and miss so far but in Mount, the Arnhem club were given a gem this season.

The English midfielder was easily the club’s player of the season as he guided them to the end of season playoffs and eventually the Europa League with 13 goals and 10 assists throughout the season.

Mount looked comfortable in the Eredivisie which has led to both Ajax and PSV showing interest, but it appears that Chelsea are ready to give the 19-year-old a chance in their first team during pre-season.

Forward: David Neres (Ajax)

The Brazilian winger was a big money signing for Ajax in January last year and was hit and miss during his first few months in the Eredivisie. However, Neres showed his form in Amsterdam this season, netting 14 goals and contributing 13 assists.

The 21-year-old can still go missing in some games for Ajax, but when he is on form, Neres can be unstoppable and tormented Eredivisie defences at times with his skill and unpredictability.

Borussia Dortmund have reportedly had a bid rejected for the winger already this summer and Ajax have a job on their hands to keep hold of their samba star.

Forward: Hirving Lozano (PSV)

PSV’s big money signing last summer lived upto his expectations in the Eredivisie and helped guide the club to the title.

The 22-year-old Mexican winger was PSV’s top scorer with 17 goals and also contributed 11 assists as he formed an excellent partnership with Steven Bergwijn and Luuk de Jong in the attack.

Pacey, skillful and deadly in front of goal, Lozano will now look to star with Mexico at the World Cup and is expected to leave PSV this summer despite having only been in Eindhoven a year.

Forward: Justin Kluivert (Ajax)

A revelation for Ajax last season, Kluivert became a key player under Michiel Keizer and then Erik ten Hag with his form going from strength to strength.

The 19-year-old still has a lot to learn but at times he during the campaign he was unstoppable and lit up the Ajax attack with ten goals and five assists. He also earned his first cap for Netherlands, emulating his father, who also debuted for the national team at 18.

Kluivert is blessed with pace, excellent dribbling ability and is comfortable with either foot. He has all it takes to become a top player but his contract situation has caused a lot of needless speculation throughout the campaign.

It appears that Kluivert will not sign an extension to his current contract which expires next summer and a move away from Amsterdam has been rumoured with AS Roma the leading candidate to sign the forward.

The Bench: Groothuizen (ADO), Miazga (Vitesse), Ouwejan (AZ), Koopmeiners (AZ), Odegaard (Heerenveen), Doan (Groningen), Bergwijn (PSV)




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