Ryan Flamingo feels completely at home at Vitesse. The twenty-year-old defender is rented from Sassuolo this season with an option to buy. Flamingo now has 22 Eredivisie matches to his name and he is having a good time in the Netherlands. “I now try to play as well and as much as possible at Vitesse. It is up to the club whether they will light the option. I would definitely like to stay here,” the defender says in conversation with Football zone.
Flamingo enjoyed his youth education at Almere City and was rented by Sassuolo in early 2021. There, the born Blaricummer made such a big impression in the Under 19 that the Italians decided to sign him permanently for a transfer fee of 70,000 euros. “I thought that was a nice step for myself. I am a football player and I wanted to get better at defending.”
The step to Italy therefore came at the right time, according to Flamingo. “When Sassuolo showed interest, football in the Netherlands came to a standstill because of corona. I played in the Under 21 at Almere City and wanted to play football. Sassuolo is also a very nice club. I immediately noticed that everything was well organized. Then I thought: I must seize this opportunity.”
At Sassuolo, the young defender was amazed. He was in the dressing room together with European champion Domenico Berardi, Gianluca Scamacca and Giacomo Raspadori. “Those were the big names. I looked up to Berardi the most. He won the European Championship with Italy in 2020 and is really a club man. The passion he has… He always gives 100 percent in training and always wants to win.”
Once back in the Netherlands, things go fast for the twenty-year-old. At Vitesse he only did not play one game. That was against Excelsior at the beginning of August. “I think I’m making good progress. I expected to have to wait for my chance and fight myself in the base, but that went faster than expected. Sometimes you need a bit of luck. I scored immediately on my starting debut and played a good game. Maybe that played a part.”
After the sudden departure of Thomas Letsch to VfL Bochum at the end of September, Phillip Cocu was appointed as Vitesse’s new coach a week later. Since then, the club has been on an upward trend and Flamingo knows why. “The formation has changed. We first played 5-3-2, now 4-3-3. Phillip has a very clear football vision, which makes him strong. I do think I benefit from him having been a defender in the past.”
It is not clear what the future will bring, according to Flamingo. He is enjoying himself in the Netherlands and a return to Italy seems out of the question. “I now try to play as well and as much as possible at Vitesse. It is up to the club whether they will light the option. I would definitely like to stay here. If I could play at Sassuolo I would go back, but I don’t think that chance is very great. They have a lot of big names, which makes it difficult. Here I fit in well with the group and I am close to my family.”