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For the first time in two years, things are finally, once again, looking up for Marco van Ginkel.
Recruited by Mourinho in the summer of 2013, the then 20-year-old Eredivisie Young Player of the Year — an honor previously held by the likes of Robben, Sneijder, Van Persie, Kalou, Bergkamp, etc — made his Chelsea debut in the first match available to him, coming on as a substitute in our 2-0 win over Hull City on opening day. But disaster struck in just his fourth appearance (and second start). There's an old adage about needing roughly two years to recover from an ACL injury*; Van Ginkel finally started showing his old form on a consistent basis towards the end of last season, on loan at AC Milan.
"Of course I want to be fit and playing games. I've come to Stoke to be a good part of the team, I want to be important for the team. After two games with Chelsea I've had a lot of injuries so I couldn't play a lot of games. This year I hope I can play a lot, get used to the Premier League. I'm very excited about it."
-Marco van Ginkel; source: Stoke Sentinel
Under Mark Hughes, Stoke have slowly started moving away from Pulisball and that's certainly a development that should suit Van Ginkel's skillset.
"I had a conversation with the manager and that was good. If you come to a club it's always important to speak to the manager to see what he's thinking about you and your place in the team. In the end I got a very good feeling to come to Stoke. It's good to meet all the boys today and I'm looking forward to my first week of training."
"I'm like a box to box player. I can be an important player in front but also defensive wise. That's what I want to bring to the team. I will work hard for the team and hopefully be important with goals and assists."
-Marco van Ginkel; source: Stoke Sentinel
Victor Moses (whose own future is quite undecided at the moment) had a good time at the Potters last season; hopefully those same good vibes can carry over to young Wulfert Cornelius as well.
* I suppose this is also our best hope for Falcao to do something this season as well...