Leeds United have signed a player with ‘exceptional’ qualities as Luis Sinisterra swaps Feyenoord for the Premier League, former Eredivisie coach Said Bakkati tells Dutch publication FR12.
It is easy to forget that Sinisterra hardly exploded out the blocks at De Kuip. There were even times where a player snapped up as a teenager from Colombian football looked destined to fall by the wayside.
As recently as 2020/21, for instance, Sinisterra played just half of Feyenoord’s league games. And few would have believed it if you had told them a year ago that the fleet-footed forward would be on his way to England for an initial fee of £18 million 12 months down the line.
But Bakkati, an assistant coach for Feyenoord in 2019, never had any doubts about Sinisterra’s talent or potential.
Leeds United sign ‘exceptional’ Luis Sinisterra
“Not everyone praised Luis,” Bakkati explains. “They looked more at his weaknesses than at his positive sides.
“People thought he looked lazy. If you don’t play football well as a team, it is often the technically skilled players who look laconic.
“I was immediately charmed by him. Technically skilled, unpredictable. In a Europa League match against FC Porto, he had the ball in the corner of the field. He was completely crowded out but dribbled past a few men and escaped anyway. That is what’s exceptional about him.
“You can’t teach that. He can make it to the top.”
That penchant for creating something out of nothing, wriggling out of the tightest of gaps, saw Sinisterra go from ‘promising talent’ to a member of the Eredivisie’s elite last term. He even scored 23 goals in all competitions – 18 more in during the previous campaign.
“Sinisterra to Leeds; I am sure they (he and Tyrell Malacia) will do very well (in England),” adds former Feyenoord team-mate Cyriel Dessers, via HLN.
Sinisterra’s arrival at Elland Road seemingly brings an end to the club’s interest in PSV talisman Cody Gakpo. The Dutch international admitted this week that Leeds had held talks with his agent.
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