Feyenoord coach Arne Slot cannot rule out Santiago Gimenez leaving in January as Premier League giants Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur reportedly scout the Eredivisie champions’ hat-trick hero.
Well, we presume it counts as a hat-trick.
As Feyenoord played out the final 20 minutes of their De Klassieker clash with Ajax following the game’s suspension three days earlier, Santiago Gimenez picked up where he left off in midweek, completing his treble in front of the silent Johan Cruyff Arena stands on Wednesday.
Gimenez now has nine goals in just six league games so far this season.
And 90Min report that Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea all had scouts in the stands over the weekend – until the flares started raining down and the smoke bombs thickened the air – with all three London giants in the market for a prolific centre-forward.
Arsenal and Tottenham watch Santiago Gimenez
“He is doing well. That cannot be denied,” Feyenoord coach Arne Slot tells ESPN; himself a target for Spurs not so long ago.
The Dutch champions, Slot says, are well-placed to prepare for Gimenez’s potential departure. They have already brought in the Japan international Ayase Ueda from Cercle Brugge.
“The great thing about Feyenoord is that, last summer, we were able to spend money on replacements. So we have a broad bench, also in case one leaves later,” adds the former AZ Alkmaar boss.
“It is not yet January. I do not know whether (Gimenez) is planning to leave in January. But you never know. In any case, we already have a very good striker in Ueda.”
January sale not ruled out
Slot’s comments will not have Feyenoord fans sleeping a little easier in their beds.
The Rotterdam giants may have bounced back superbly following the summer sale of title-winning captain Orkun Kokcu but finding a replacement for Gimenez – scorer of 24 league goals in 38 Feyenoord games – could prove to be beyond even Feyenoord’s recruitment department.
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