Sydney van Hooijdonk

Sydney van Hooijdonk (born 6 February 2000) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre forward for Serie A club Bologna.[1]

In this Dutch name, the surname is van Hooijdonk, not Hooijdonk.
Sydney van Hooijdonk
Personal information
Full name Sydney van Hooijdonk[1]
Date of birth (2000-02-06) 6 February 2000[1]
Place of birth Breda, Netherlands[1]
Height 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[1]
Position(s) Forward[1]
Team information
Current team
 Bologna
Number 77
Youth career
0000–2017 VV Beek Vooruit
2017–2018 NAC Breda
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2021 NAC Breda 68 (22)
2021– Bologna 8 (0)
2022–2023 → Heerenveen (loan) 48 (22)
International career‡
2023–2023 Netherlands U21 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 7 October 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 27 March 2023

Club career

NAC Breda

Van Hooijdonk made his league debut for NAC Breda on 5 October 2018 in a 2-1 away defeat against FC Utrecht in the Eredivisie, being substituted on in the 90th Minute, replacing Estonian centre back and defensive midfielder, Karol Mets.[2] NAC Breda's 2018-19 campaign ended in relegation from the top-flight, securing only 5 wins and 8 draws, and finishing on 23 points. They were officially relegated to the Keuken Kampioen Divisie, following a 2-1 away defeat against SC Heerenveen on 12 May 2019, after failing to qualify for the 2018-19 Eredivisie / Keuken Kampioen Divisie Promotion / Relegation play-offs.[3] During that season, Van Hooijdonk made a total of 12 league appearances from the bench, but failed to score or set up any goals.[4]

The 2019–20 Keuken Kampioen Divisie season saw Van Hooijdonk starting off the bench again, but he very quickly began playing full matches on a semi-regular basis, making 25 appearances, scoring 6 goals and assisting 2 others.[4] A bulk of his goals and assists came during the 1st Period, and he was acclaimed with being a driving force towards NAC Breda winning it.[5] However, the club couldn't utilize the playoff spot they'd won, as the season was abandoned by the KNVB on 24 April 2020,[6] following a suspension that the Dutch Government issued on 12 March 2020 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.[7]

The 2020–21 Keuken Kampioen Divisie season saw Van Hooijdonk become a key player for NAC Breda despite suffering several minor injuries, securing 16 goals and 2 assists in 31 appearances (including those in the 2020-21 Eredivisie / Keuken Kampioen Divisie Promotion / Relegation play-offs, where his club were defeated in the Final in a 2-1 home defeat to NEC).[4] Van Hooijdonk's contract was set to expire at the end of the 2020-21 season, and he was attracting End of Contract interest from clubs including Celtic and Nottingham Forest,[8] likely due to these being clubs his father played at. However, perhaps due to new Work Permit rules issued by the Home Office in the United Kingdom following Brexit (which is points-based and calculated by several factors, such as Youth / Senior International Appearances, Club Ranking / League Standing and Club Appearances),[9] these deals failed to materialize and he left NAC Breda at the end of the season, becoming a Free Agent.[10]

Bologna

On 3 July 2021, he joined Serie A club Bologna on a Free Transfer, on a contract which could keep him at the club until the end of the 2024-25 season.[11] The 2021–22 Serie A season saw Van Hooijdonk make only 4 appearances for his club (each appearance from the bench, and each resulting in no goals or assists).[4]

Heerenveen (loan)

On 25 January 2022, he joined Eredivisie club Heerenveen on loan until the end of the 2021–22 season,[12] despite initial reservations about returning to the Netherlands.[13] The 2021–22 Eredivisie season saw Van Hooijdonk make a definite impact while on loan at Heerenveen, obtaining 6 goals and 1 assist in 13 appearances,[4] and piquing the interest of Heerenveen's Technical Director, Ferry de Haan, who approached Bologna to enquire about his availability.[14]

On 21 June 2022, it was reported that Bologna were considering adding players (including Van Hooijdonk) to a potential deal for FC Groningen's Norwegian forward, Jørgen Strand Larsen.[15] Van Hooijdonk was quick to distance himself from the rumoured deal, likely due to the club being rivals with Heerenveen.[16] On 30 June 2022, his loan contract with Heerenveen expired, and he returned to Bologna.[17] On 25 July 2022, Van Hooijdonk returned to Heerenveen on loan until the end of the 2022-23 Eredivisie season.[18] The 2022–23 Eredivisie season was another respectable showing for Van Hooijdonk, seeing him net 16 goals and 1 assist in 35 appearances.[4]

Return to Bologna

On 30 June 2023, his loan contract with Heerenveen expired. A return to Bologna for the 2023–24 Serie A season has currently seen Van Hooijdonk score 0 goals and bag 0 assists in 4 appearances.[4]

Personal life

He is the son of former Dutch international footballer Pierre van Hooijdonk.[19] He is of Moroccan descent through his biological paternal grandfather.[20]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 7 October 2023[4]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
NAC Breda 2018–19 Eredivisie 12000120
2019–20 Eerste Divisie 2562177
2020–21 Eerste Divisie 3116003116
Total 6822217023
Bologna 2021–22 Serie A 401050
2023–24 Serie A 400040
Total 801090
Heerenveen (loan) 2021–22 Eredivisie 13600136
2022–23 Eredivisie 3516433919
Total 4822435225
Career total 124447413049
  1. Includes KNVB Cup, Coppa Italia

International
As of match played 27 March 2023[4]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Netherlands U21 202320
Total20

Honours

Individual

References
  1. "Sydney van Hooijdonk - Worldfootball". Worldfootball. 17 October 2021.
  2. "Game Report by Worldfootball". Worldfootball. 5 October 2018.
  3. "Game Report by Worldfootball". Worldfootball. 12 May 2019.
  4. "Sydney van Hooijdonk » Club matches - Worldfootball". Worldfootball. 3 February 2022.
  5. "Van Hooijdonk helpt NAC aan eerste periodetitel, Cambuur wint topper" (in Dutch). BN DeStem. 4 October 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  6. "KNVB beslist: Ajax nummer één, geen promotie/degradatie" [KNVB decides: Ajax number one, no promotion/relegation] (in Dutch). NOS. 24 April 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  7. "tot en met 31 maart geen voetbal in nederland" [Until 31 March no football in the Netherlands] (in Dutch). KNVB. 12 March 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  8. "Sydney van Hooijdonk, son of ex-Celtic star Pierre, has ripped it up in Holland this season". 67 Hail Hail. 26 May 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  9. "How footballers qualify for UK work permits following Brexit". 90min. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  10. "Van Hooijdonk kondigt vertrek aan bij NAC Breda" [Van Hooijdonk announces departure from NAC Breda] (in Dutch). Voetbal International. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  11. "Sydney Van Hooijdonk joins Bologna". Bologna. 3 July 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  12. "Sydney van Hooijdonk naar SC Heerenveen" [Sydney van Hooijdonk to SC Heerenveen] (in Dutch). Heerenveen. 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  13. "'Had weinig zin om naar Nederland te gaan, gevoel dat ik onder vergrootglas lig'" ['I didn't feel like going to the Netherlands, I feel like I'm under a magnifying glass'] (in Dutch). VoetbalPrimeur. 31 May 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  14. "Technisch Manager SC Heerenveen: "Het liefst zouden we Van Hooijdonk kopen"" [Technical Manager SC Heerenveen: "We would prefer to buy Van Hooijdonk"] (in Dutch). Omrop Fryslân. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  15. "VI: concrete beweging rondom Strand Larsen, naam Van Hooijdonk valt" [VI: Concrete movement around Strand Larsen, name of Van Hooijdonk dropped] (in Dutch). VoetbalPrimeur. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  16. "Van Hooijdonk reageert op potentiële ruildeal: 'Zou ik nooit doen, had geen idee'" [Van Hooijdonk responds to potential exchange deal: 'I would never do it, I had no idea'] (in Dutch). VoetbalNieuws. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  17. "Voetballers op vakantie: Argentijnse internationals genieten op Ibiza, De Bruyne en Van Dijk feesten" [Football players on holiday: Argentine internationals enjoy Ibiza, De Bruyne and Van Dijk party] (in Dutch). AD. 2 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  18. "SC Heerenveen on Twitter: "He's back #SydneyNogeenjaar"". Heerenveen. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  19. Pertijs, Ad (1 September 2018). "Voetbal was nooit ver weg in huize Van Hooijdonk" [Football was never far away in the Van Hooijdonk household]. BN DeStem (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  20. "Vader Pierre van Hooijdonk overleden". www.rijnmond.nl. March 17, 2019.
  21. "8 clubs provide players for Eredivisie team of the month in April". eredivisie.eu. May 6, 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.