Linssen always kept the door open for Feyenoord: ‘Wanted to take a sporting step’ | Right away
Bryan Linssen is happy to be able to call himself a Feyenoord player next season after difficult negotiations. The 29-year-old striker says he has taken a sporting step over purely financial gain.
Linssen, who signed for Three Years at De Kuip on Monday, announced late last year that he would not renew his contract with Vitesse. Since interested clubs did not have to put transfer fees on the table, he said he was in a “luxury position”.
“I didn’t have to go straight into the first offer, from every club,” he says in a video posted on the Website Feyenoord. “I really turned down some clubs, I was really looking for a sporting move.”
Linssen missed the chance to choose big money in the Middle East. “If it was just for finances, I’d be on a beach in Dubai now. You just want everything to be okay.”
“A long time, but the door always remained open”
Linssen had been in Feyenoord’s interest for months, but a deal seemed to sell off at first. In May, the Limburger rejected an offer because he was not satisfied with the financial proposal.
“It took a long time,” admits the creator of 14 goals in the last Eredivisie season. “But the door for Feyenoord has never closed. I’ve always left it open.’
For Linssen, Feyenoord is the seventh club of his career. Previously he played for MVV, VVV-Venlo, Heracles Almelo, FC Groningen and Vitesse. At Feyenoord, he is the third reinforcement for next season after Mark Diemers and Christian Conteh.