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Vitesse is back in Arnhem after winter training in Abu Dhabi, and the club looks ready to start the second half of the Eredivisie campaign. Our second favourite club is back in action on Saturday and will travel to IJsseldelta Stadion to take on PEC Zwolle.
Zwolle is only five points clear of being subjected to the complicated process by which one gets relegated from the Eredivisie and which we'll just call the erm, zone of danger, for simplicity's sake. Look for Vitesse to start the season off on a positive note, and perhaps with an attacking band of three featuring Lucas Piazon, Christian Atsu, and Bertrand Traore (Peter Bosz favours the familiar 4-2-3-1 formation).
Lucas Piazon interview
Lucas Piazon sat down to chat with Vitesse TV when the club was in Abu Dhabi, and it's pretty interesting to hear Piazon discuss his relationship with Bertrand Traore and how he enjoys living in a small town.
Peter Bosz on Gael Kakuta and Sam Hutchinson's exit
The Dutch media were a bit surprised when Chelsea recalled Gael Kakuta back to Stamford Bridge a few weeks ago, and Vitesse manager Peter Bosz spoke with Voetbal International regarding Kakuta leaving Vitesse after an eighteen-month stay.
"Two months before the break, I spoke with Gael. He regretted not starting, but saw that the team was playing well. He thought about it and decided to leave. [Kakuta] said 'It is now the fifth time I've been loaned, and it's time for me to join a club on a contract where I could fight for a starting spot.' I agreed with him, and it is unfortunate that he had to leave [during mid-season], but this is what happened. It's a shame because Gael was important with his speed."
Bosz also shed some light on the Hutchinson deal. When the loan deal was first announced, it seemed curious that Chelsea would send an English player to Vitesse, and especially one that was unlikely to compete for serious minutes in the Eredivisie. On the surface, one might think that Chelsea recalled Hutchinson because he wasn't getting any playing time. However, Bosz shares that the plan all along was for Hutchinson to stay for six months.
In addition, Bosz said that the goal for Hutchinson was not to crack the Vitesse lineup, but only to work on getting fit, a goal that Bosz said that they achieved together.
Christian Atsu analysis
Squawka's Tim Simon wrote an interesting piece on Christian Atsu a few weeks back, and since the Eredivisie has been on winter break, all of the stats are still current. Tim uses a lot of statistics to impute Atsu's performance level, and if you enjoyed his earlier article on Lucas Piazon, you'll surely enjoy his Atsu piece.
Lastly, we at WAGNH have been pleasantly surprised to see that more and more Vitesse supporters have found our coverage, so if you see any of our Cobham East (or as they might call us, Papendal West) cousins in the comments section, be sure to say hello!
