Chelsea loanee Wulfert Cornelius “Marco” van Ginkel continues to be one of the best players in the Eredivisie, but that’s really not news anymore. He was one of the best five years ago already, when he won the league’s Young Player of the Year and subsequently became the first and so far only player to transfer in the reverse direction, from Chelsea B Vitesse to Chelsea.
He now also has two Eredivisie titles to his name, winning this latest rather emphatically thanks to PSV’s 3-0 thumping of arch-rivals and second place Ajax Amsterdam on Sunday.
#PSVKampioen pic.twitter.com/eUarjYibym
— PSV (@PSV) April 15, 2018
Why is someone as talented as Van Ginkel still stuck in the Dutch league? It’s not like this is his first season there, like, say, the super-talented Hirving “Chucky” Lozano (hint, hint Chelsea).
Unfortunately, MvG, who used to bear a striking resemblance to Justin Bieber, has had shockingly bad luck with injuries, which, above all else, have prevented him from making an impact at most of the teams he’s played for since leaving Vitesse. Just four appearances into his Chelsea career, a knee ligament gave way and after barely adequate rehab stops at AC Milan and Stoke City, he decided to try his luck back in his homeland, this time with PSV.
He joined halfway through the 2015-16 season and scored multiple big goals in what turned out to be a title-winning season. Knee issues (again!) the following summer meant that he rejoined PSV only for the second-half of the season once again, though this time silverware was out of their reach already. But at least Van Ginkel was managing to stay healthy and thus PSV extended his loan last May and even made him club captain.
El delantero centro, el capitán y el muñeco diabólico! pic.twitter.com/nMUYVZh3xn
— PSV International (@psveindhoven) April 15, 2018
Van Ginkel has rewarded that faith by not only staying healthy (save for a shoulder injury — at least it wasn’t a knee!) and scoring 16 goals in 31 appearances in all competitions (from midfield!), but also captaining the side to yet another Eredivisie title. It’s not often that loanees are made club captains, but Van Ginkel’s now 2.5-year relationship with PSV is not all that common of a loan arrangement either. He clearly enjoys playing in the Dutch league and they are clearly hoping that this is still only just the start of a long and happy career for the 25-year-old in Eindhoven.
Does MvG have a potential future at Chelsea? He signed a new three-year contract last summer, though that was largely viewed as protection for both him (injuries) and Chelsea (investment) rather than any actual long-term commitment. If there is desire from the player and the club to maybe give it a shot one more time this summer, he could conceivably work his way into the first-team. But it’s probably more likely that he makes his stay at PSV a permanent one sooner rather than later.
In any case, congrats, Wulfert Cornelius and PSV, Champions of the Netherlands!