Championship side Leeds United have completed the signing of Pascal Strujik from Eredivisie giants Ajax.
Not for the first time since Victor Orta was announced as the club’s director of football, Leeds United have plucked an exciting teenage talent from the Netherlands.
Five months after a lanky forward by the name of Jay-Roy Grot arrived at Elland Road from NEC Nijmegen, Leeds have raided the esteemed academy of Ajax to secure the signing of 18-year-old centre-back Pascal Strujik.
The youngster had just six months remaining on his contract at the Amsterdam Arena and, according to the club’s official website, could feature for Leeds’ under-23 side as early as Friday with Birmingham City the next opponents.
And unless Stujik performs at an entirely different level to anyone else in his age group, perhaps the reserves is the best place for him right now.
After all, Grot has endured a difficult first few months as a Leeds player largely because he was thrown into the first-team when he clearly wasn’t ready.
The 19-year-old only arrived in West Yorkshire with a smattering of professional games under his belt, but has already been written off by some after failing to score in 13 Championship appearances, albeit all of those coming from the bench.
If Grot’s adaption had been handled with a little more care, perhaps by introducing him via the reserve side first, then he would not have been the subject of such intense criticism over the last couple of months.
Leeds, then, should avoid making the same mistake twice and only throw Strujik into the action when he is ready. It is difficult enough adapting to a new country, a new language and a new culture, but things are twice as daunting when you are not even out of your teens.
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