Champions League

LUUK DE DONG has hit back at his critics after being named as one of the Premier League’s worst ever strikers. Back in the second half of the 2013/14 season, De Jong had a brief 12-game loan spell with Newcastle where he failed to score.
Luuk de Jong has hit back at his critics after he was told he was named among the worst strikers in Premier League historyCredit: Getty
De Jong had a goalless 12-game loan spell at Newcastle in 2014Credit: Getty
De Jong has been on fire in the Champions League this season
A decade on from then and he was told about him being ranked at No75 in a 2017 list of “the biggest flops”.
In an interview with The Guardian, De Jong could not help but laugh at his ranking.
Biting back, he said: “Really? When I only played 12 matches and not all of them from the start?
“And not in my position, either? Oh well, that’s the football world, you know. I was young.
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“I think I am better armed now to take on Premier League defenders.
“It’s about your response to adversity – that makes the difference.”
De Jong, 33, has come a long way since then, scoring for PSV in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Borussia Dortmund for starters.
His pedigree in European competitions speak for itself, with 12 goals in 38 Champions League games and 17 in 48 Europa League games.
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Former Tottenham star Rafael van der Vaart also names him as the best header of the ball in Europe.
Opta stats backing up that claim, with 77 goals being scored with the 6′ 2″ forward’s head including 13 of the 27 strikes the PSV captain has this season.
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De Jong puts this down to his upbringing – by Dutch international volleyball player parents who played with him in the garden or at the beach – which helped with his sense of timing.
The Dutchman has also featured for Barcelona for one season, scoring seven goals in 29 games.
But he admitted his time there was “strange” due to him being labelled as Lionel Messi’s replacement following the Argentine’s move to Paris Saint-Germain.
He said: “That was very strange. Of course I was not brought in as his direct replacement.
“No one can replace that man. I came there as a target man. But I was actually sitting at his place in the dressing room. That was nice.”
One of the crowning moments of his career came after he was told he could leave the Camp Nou by Xavi, who had replaced Ronald Koeman after he signed De Jong.
De Jong said: “After that I scored some important goals, mostly headers. At one point they sang my name at Camp Nou at every corner or free-kick.
“You wouldn’t think it gets better than that. I am very proud of that.”
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Good times come with the tough however, and De Jong has credited his mental strength as part of the reason he is now the “best version of himself”.
He said: “I never gave up. I always kept working hard and I think I am the best version of myself now.”
De Jong arrived at Barcelona and was labelled as Lionel Messi’s replacementCredit: Getty
De Jong scored seven times in his sole season with Barcelona and revealed he sat in Messi’s old seatCredit: Getty More