NOS Voetbal•vandaag, 21:03
RKC goalkeeper Vaessen will keep goal for Suriname: ‘Then my name will be Burnet’
RKC Waalwijk must visit newly crowned national champion PSV on Sunday to avoid relegation in the play-offs. But despite that challenging assignment, goalkeeper Etienne Vaessen is already thinking about Suriname. Not as a holidaymaker, but as a real international.
Because a place under the bar in the Surinamese team beckons for Vaessen, partly thanks to RKC coach Henk Fraser and exercise physiologist Iwan Redan. They knew about the partly Surinamese blood that Vaessen has running through his veins and that information came through to Brian Tevreden, the director of football affairs at the Surinamese Football Association.
“He called to see if it was correct,” says Vaessen, born in Breda, who answered in the affirmative. “I also spoke to national coach Stanley Menzo afterwards. They convinced me and also said that more great players are coming. The coach here also thinks it’s great that I choose his country.”
Opa Burnet
The choice was not that difficult either. “I think it is a very nice experience, also from a sporting point of view. I will probably not manage the Dutch national team anymore, perhaps as a third or fourth goalkeeper in the future, if I were at a bigger club. But I attach more value to it to probably become Suriname’s first goalkeeper and be able to play World Cup qualifiers and the Gold Cup.”
RKC almost safe: ‘That tension is the best thing there is for a player’
The closing post owes its Surinamese roots to his grandfather, born in Paramaribo, who came to the Netherlands when he was sixteen and founded a family here. Vaessen never got to know him, but will soon wear his surname on his back: Burnet. The result of the new passport he had to apply for.
“But other than that, I just keep Vaessen as my surname, my mother’s surname. I’ve been going by that all my life and that’s how people know me. But in Suriname my name is Etienne Burnet.”
Suriname will play two qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup in June: at home against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and away against Anguilla. “I googled Anguilla and saw very beautiful, white beaches. I haven’t seen a football field yet, but there probably is one somewhere. We are going to make it a nice trip, commit ourselves to Suriname and ensure that we win the World Cup. go get.”
Not too many goals conceded
The twinkle in his eye betrays his enthusiasm about the unexpected adventure, but first the harsh reality awaits: Vaessen still has to survive with RKC. The Waalwijkers now have a safe fifteenth place, but Excelsior is close to taking over that position and pushing RKC towards the play-offs.
NOSThe standings for the last round of play
Both teams have the same number of points, but RKC has a slightly better goal difference than its competitor, who has to eliminate a difference of three goals. An interesting detail is that the respective opponents are not the best: RKC travels to PSV, while Excelsior is a guest at Feyenoord, the clear number two in the rankings.
“Just play one more match and give it your all,” is Vaessen’s motto. “We approach it like any other match. Prepare optimally. We go there to get a point or points. Although we also have to think realistically and above all not concede too many goals.”
He assumes that Feyenoord will do its sporting duty in De Kuip, also because the match against Excelsior is the last with coach Arne Slot, who is leaving for Liverpool, on the bench. “But we shouldn’t hope for that at all. We now have to rely on our own strength.”
PSV-RKC Waalwijk at NOS
The PSV-RKC Waalwijk kick-off is on Sunday at 2:30 PM, just like the other eight Premier League matches. These can all be followed via a live blog on NOS.nl and in the NOS app, but also via flashes on NPO Radio 1.
Summaries can be viewed online and in soon after the matches Studio Sport Eredivisie from 7 p.m. on NPO 1.
2024-05-17 19:03:13
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