During spells at AZ Alkmaar, PSV Eindhoven and Everton, Marcel Brands has made some impressive signings.
Where Marcel Brands goes, success inevitably follows.
The Dutchman is rightly renowned as one of European football’s great talent-spotters, a man capable of locating a diamond in the rough and making a transformative impact on whichever club he comes into contact with.
Brands turned AZ Alkmaar from a mid-table club into Eredivisie champions and helped PSV win three league titles in the last four years before bringing some truly outstanding talents to Goodison Park.
Lucas Digne, Andre Gomes and Richarlison are just three of the players who have arrived at Everton since Brands took over as the club’s director of football in the summer. But who else has the esteemed transfer guru snapped up during a stellar career?
Sergio Romero – AZ Alkmaar 2007, £1m
The long-serving Argentina number one first moved to European football with Brands’ AZ 11 years ago and quickly established himself as the club’s first-choice under the fork-tongued Louis Van Gaal. Two years later, Romero starred as AZ brought the Eredivisie title to Alkmaar for only the second time in their history.
Now, the 31-year-old is the back-up to David de Gea at Manchester United.
Santiago Arias – PSV 2013, £1.5m
A combative and swashbuckling right-back, Colombian international Arias arrived at PSV from Sporting Lisbon five years ago and wasted little time in establishing himself as a fans’ favourite at the Philips Stadium.
Arias got better and better at PSV, winning the Eredivisie three times, and is now ready and waiting to succeed the veteran Juanfran at Atletico Madrid.
Kurt Zouma – Everton 2018, loan
Zouma looked every inch Chelsea’s new John Terry until he ruptured his cruciate ligament in a clash with Manchester United in early 2016. But after a difficult spell at Stoke City which resulted in relegation, the former St Etienne wonderkid is starting to find his mojo again at Goodison Park.
A fast and athletic centre-half, Zouma is expected to return to Stamford Bridge at the end of this season.
Yerry Mina – Everton 2018, £28m
One of three players to arrive at Goodison Park from Barcelona this summer, Mina has made a sluggish start to life on Merseyside and hardly covered himself in glory during the 3-1 defeat to Manchester City in December.
But the giant centre-back, a buoyant figure off the pitch and a real goal threat on it, has all the makings of a top class defensive talent.
Lucas Digne – Everton 2018, £18m
Leighton who? Baines’ long-term successor might have looked a little suspect defensively since he swapped the Camp Nou for England’s North West but there’s no doubting his ability going forward.
A wonderful crosser of the ball and a set-piece specialist, see his stoppage time equaliser against Watford, Digne has already played for PSG, Roma and Barca despite being just 25 years of age.
Andre Gomes – Everton 2018, loan
Gomes admitted that he was struggling to deal with life under the microscope at Barcelona but it’s fair to say he is enjoying a new lease of life at Everton. The Portugal international has looked a class above in blue, drawing comparisons with Mikel Arteta and showing signs of the form that convinced Barca to pay £31.5 million for his signature in 2016.
The former Valencia ace is made for the Premier League.
Gini Wijnaldum – PSV 2011, £4.5m
Brands pulled off a real coup when he brought one of the Netherland’s top young talents to PSV from Feyenoord seven years ago and Wijnaldum’s time in Eindhoven was certainly an unqualified success, captaining Philipp Cocu’s side to the 2014 Eredivisie title before his big-money move to Newcastle.
Like Brands, Wijnaldum is now plying his trade in Liverpool but for Everton’s arch rivals.
Mousa Dembele – AZ 2006, £4.5m
Dembele will always be a legend in Alkmaar for his integral role in the unexpected title triumph of 2009. The former Willem II man scored 10 goals to fire Van Gaal’s underdogs to glory and justify Brands’ decision to splash out on his servives.
These days, Dembele is a deep-lying playmaker rather than a versatile forward and has finally fulfilled his massive potential with some dominant midfield displays under Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham Hotspur.
Dries Mertens – PSV 2011, £7.65m
Brands certainly worked his magic when he replaced Hungarian international Balasz Dzsudzsak with the speedy Utrectht forward Mertens in 2011. Because while Dzsudzsak slipped out of view in a nomadic and underwhelming career, Mertens has developed into one of Europe’s most feared forwards.
Still rapid at the age of 31, the repurposed central striker has scored 56 goals in his last two seasons for Italian giants Napoli.
Richarlison – Everton 2018, £50 million
While Marco Silva might have been central to the former Watford man’s club-record move to Goodison in the summer, Brands still deserves credit for signing a player who quickly silenced the doubters with a brilliant start to life in Everton colours.
Inconsistent at Watford, Richarlison has been prolific at Everton and has even replaced Gabriel Jesus as Brazil’s centre-forward.
Hirving Lozano – PSV 2017, £7.2m
Big things were expected when Lozano rocked up at PSV from Mexican outfit Pachuca and he didn’t disappoint. The winger’s debut season in Holland could hardly have gone better as he scored 19 goals in all competitions in another title-winning campaign.
Lozano has another 15 already in 2018/19 and you can guarantee that he’s worth a lot more than £7.2m now.
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