Milan Keskin
- Updated: Feb 8 2024 13:30 CET
- 5 min reading time
© IMAGO
Once again Vitesse failed to win a match on Wednesday. The Arnhem team lost without a chance 3-1 when they visited Eerste Divisionist SC Cambuur for the KNVB Cup tournament. It was yet another defeat for the bottom of the league in the Eredivisie, which means that the bottom seems far from being in sight. Averting relegation seems to be becoming more difficult as the rounds progress. A fit Kacper Kozlowski may be able to change that.
“Anything I say now won’t help anyway. But what we do is simply not enough. This is not worthy of Vitesse,” occasional captain Mica Pinto said straight to the point at ESPN. “And when I say that, I am talking about everyone, including myself. If we want to get out of this position, we have to bring much more. We can come up with a thousand excuses, but all I can say is: sorry to the fans. They have traveled a long time to get here, but we did not deserve to wear this shirt tonight. I am ashamed of this, because this is unacceptable.”
Mica Pinto doesn’t mince her words:
“We were not worthy of this shirt today.” ????#camvit
Article continues below the video
— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) February 7, 2024
The annoying thing for Vitesse at the moment is that the game offers no support. The Arnhem team lost the last four games, and not once was it really undeserved. A lot will have to change if Vitesse wants to have any chance of a place in the play-offs. A lot depends on Kozlowski. The attacking midfielder is rented from Brighton & Hove Albion for the second year in a row this season, but while the Polish youth international was decisive for Vitesse in his first year, there is little to see of this this season.
With two goals and five assists, Kozlowski was one of the decisive players under Phillip Cocu last season and the Pole became a crowd favorite. There was great joy in Arnhem that the club had managed to hire Kozlowski from Brighton & Hove Albion for another year. After all, the Seagulls paid eleven million euros to Pogon Szczecin for the midfielder in 2022.
This season, however, everything is different for both Vitesse and the twenty-year-old midfielder. Vitesse is performing below par, while Kozlowski has not yet scored a single goal this season, has provided three assists and has not yet managed to complete the ninety minutes. If Kozlowski wants to make a move after this season, the midfielder will have to perform better very quickly.
The chance that Vitesse will still have access to top talent next season is minimal. With relegation on the horizon, it will not become easier for Vitesse to rent such players from Premier League clubs. It is therefore important for Kozlowski to take a step after this season, so that he can show that he can perform at a higher level than at the bottom of the Eredivisie.
Career Tool van SciSports
TeamCompetitionClub FitDevelopmentPlaying TimePlaying StyleFormationBurnleyPremier League82*************Spartak MoscowPremier Liga80***************FeyenoordEredivisie78************
According to SciSports’ Career Advice Tool, Feyenoord could be an excellent option. Kozlowski might not immediately be able to count on a starting position at De Kuip, but he does have the talent to be an absolute added value under Arne Slot in the long term. In fact, the midfielder has a Potential of 76.4, which shows that Kozlowski can even become a starter in the Premier League in the long term. With this Potential, Kozlowski is seen as Poland’s greatest talent. For example, Calvin Stengs is currently the Feyenoord player with the highest Skill. The attacking midfielder has an average of 70.8. A level that Kozlowski can transcend.
Since Brighton invested heavily in the arrival of Kozlowski a year and a half ago, there is little chance that the Premier League club will now want to participate in a sell-out. Yet there is a reason to assume that Feyenoord can acquire the midfielder for a lower amount than the transfer fee of eleven million euros: his Estimated Transfer Value. The Pole currently has an ETV of 5.8 euros. A value that has been declining significantly since October. If Kozlowski is relegated with Vitesse this season, it is not inconceivable that his ETV will drop even further.
