René van der Gijp doubts Joey Veerman can make his mark at Borussia Dortmund or Mika Godts at Paris Saint-Germain. The Vandaag Inside pundit believes both will struggle to stand out at Europe's highest level.
Veerman draws the sharpest criticism from Van der Gijp, who doubts the former PSV player has what it takes to lead Borussia Dortmund.
On Thursday evening's Vandaag Inside, Van der Gijp turns first to PSV's and Feyenoord's Champions League matches. PSV lost 1-0 to RB Leipzig, while Feyenoord beat Como 3-2. "I thought both PSV and Feyenoord were tremendous advertisements for the Champions League," says Van der Gijp.
"Whichever way you look at it, I think it's incredibly impressive to have the upper hand at times against the team third in Italy," Van der Gijp says of Feyenoord. "And the same goes for PSV. We only saw one half, but they had the upper hand in that too. If you score that penalty, there's no problem at all."
Van der Gijp critical of Godts at PSG
Next comes Anis Hadj Moussa's transfer fee. Feyenoord reportedly reached a €42 million agreement with Al-Ittihad last summer, but the forward stayed in Rotterdam. Van der Gijp reckons that would have been an excellent sum for the Algerian.
"I think €42 million to €45 million is a very good fee for Hadj Moussa, because I don't think it'll be Paris Saint-Germain. They've been taken aback by Godts now, too. They must be thinking to themselves: goodness me..." says Van der Gijp.
Van der Gijp then draws a comparison with Veerman, who left PSV for Borussia Dortmund last summer for around €20 million to €25 million. "What I always say, I'll keep saying. That applies to Veerman too. Dortmund have no use for the Veerman who was at PSV. He has to make a step up. And he won't make that step, because he's already too old for it (almost 28, ed.)."
Foreign players at Europe's top clubs face extra pressure, according to Van der Gijp. "You can see it at Dortmund now too, with those people... Look, when things aren't going well, people look to the foreigners. They're foreigners, a lot of money has been paid for them. And he isn't going to lead Dortmund. Absolutely not."