Swansea City finally got their man after weeks of negotiating with Dutch title chasers PSV. What fans will now be wondering is whether or not the winger can come up with the goods to help the Swans avoid relegation from the Premier League.
- By Michael Statham
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Narsingh arrived at PSV with bags of potential from Heerenveen at the age of 21. The Eindhoven side were keen on the winger following his impressive 20 league assists in the 2011/12 season. At the time, he was one of four forward players in a swashbuckling Frisian frontline also featuring Bas Dost, Oussama Assaidi and Filip Djuricic.
The 16 time capped Dutch international went on to have a promising start at PSV but has since fallen out of favour. The then new manager Phillip Cocu in 2013 never had a problem with Narsingh, but there were always doubts over the player’s consistency and ability to discover a finishing touch whilst playing in a PSV side that could create numerous chances for him.
The former Ajax youth product remained in the side for a couple of seasons to come, due to a lack of significant competition in the squad, but PSV fans tended to question his selection due to his wastefulness in front of goal and occasional inability to spot a better option in the final third.
One thing the winger does possess is pace. Narsingh loves to dash down the right-wing to either beat his opponent and deliver a cross or cut inside in an attempt to meet the goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation. Surely then, you could argue that Narsingh may do well for the Welsh side, considering pace is often seen as a lethal weapon in the Premier League, plus his speed is handy in counter-attacks, which PSV aren’t usually associated with due to their dominance in the Eredivisie.
There is evidence that Narsingh does have what it takes against “bigger teams”. A leap from the Eredivisie to the Premier League is often questioned, but Narsingh’s best form last season arguably came in the Champions League. Perhaps Swansea have been watching tapes of his goal against Manchester United.
The 26-year-old is at a ripe age to leave the Dutch giants after such good service. However, it’s not expected too many PSV fans will be losing sleep over his departure, despite contributing 26 goals in over 150 games to help lift two Eredivisie titles in his time at the club.
Can he help Swansea stay in the Premier League? Yes, he can help. The forward is a marginal upgrade on Jefferson Montero and Wayne Routledge due to his enhanced pace and crossing ability. Although, Swansea’s problems don’t lie in attack, they will be far more concerned with issues in defence.
Narsingh has been largely a bench-warmer this season, so the move can only increase his confidence. He wouldn’t be the first player to surprise Eredivisie fans after an unexpected move to the Premier League. Take Stoke’s forward Bojan for example, who was pretty dismal for Ajax before impressing for the Potters.
For £4 million though, Narsingh can be considered good business. In conclusion, Narsingh is a pacy and direct winger but lacks composure around the opposition box to really make him stand out on the European radar.
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Writer/interviewer/YouTuber for Football-Oranje. Massive Dutch football fan from the UK. Follow me @EredivisieMike & subscribe to Football-Oranje on YouTube.
