Donyell Malen is very important to PSV early in the season. In the thirteen official matches that the attacker played, he scored eight times and prepared three other goals. In total, the third captain of PSV has already scored 25 goals in 57 Eredivisie matches, and to think that he was mainly a substitute in his first season with the Eindhoven main force. Pierre van Hooijdonk foresees a bright future for the man who scores every 114 minutes on average. “If Malen hadn’t had his injury, maybe last season would have been his year.”

“Then he might have already taken the step abroad. But I really think if you’re going somewhere you should play too. That is what you play for and what makes you develop faster. Malen must therefore go to a club where he is certainly the first striker ”, Van Hooijdonk emphasizes in conversation with Football International. He hopes that Malen will build his career carefully. “Where do I see him play? I am thinking of a club like Borussia Dortmund. Not an absolute world top, but it does rub against that. Sometimes they are there, then they fall away again, but it always has a high level. If he is the regular striker at such a club and scores a lot there, then he makes the step to the real top. ”

Van Hooijdonk cites Erling Braut Haaland as an example. “He came from Red Bull Salzburg, did not go to the world top, but he will soon have played everything at Dortmund for a year and a half and scored a lot. This intermediate step is sometimes necessary to eventually reach the world top. In Malen, it is ultimately going to be there. I don’t know him any further, but he does radiate that passion. And I think his head is fine too. I feel that he is mentally stable. That is also necessary to reach the top. ” Youri Mulder believes that Malen should not leave PSV too soon. “He is only 21 years old and it is absolutely okay to continue at this level for a while. He makes his goals in the Eredivisie and plays international matches where the level is higher with the Orange or in the Europa League. ”

“If you play in a top league at a top European club, you always have to be top in three competitions. Now, in principle, Malen only has to do this in two. In the Eredivisie he can make a lot of minutes and score a lot. That is important and you should not underestimate it. Young footballers’ bodies really have to get used to three top matches a week. That should slowly get into your bones. ” Mulder finds it important that Malen ends up in a team where his fellow players can serve him well. “Grinding is somewhat more dependent on what is around him. The trick for him is to find the right club after PSV. If he has those players who can put him to work, there is a good chance that he will also succeed abroad. ”

Arnold Bruggink states that Malen is currently completely at home with PSV, especially in the system that Roger Schmidt wants to play. “Malen is also only 21, he plays everything and is even the third captain. What more could you want as a young football player? He must not overburden himself in a top competition, first play everything for one or two seasons in the Eredivisie. I actually think that Malen should only leave when he is the top scorer in the Netherlands. But if he continues to develop like this, the European top clubs will come for him. ”