Luuk de Jong failed to score a Premier League goal under Alan Pardew at Newcastle United – but he has been in remarkable form for PSV in the Eredivisie.
Luuk de Jong will not look back on his time at Newcastle United with any great fondness.
A Dutch international who stands amongst some of the most prolific goalscorers in the Eredivisie over the last 10 years, De Jong’s ill-fated loan spell at St James’ Park in the second half of the 2012/13 season is best left forgotten.
In 12 games, the target man failed to score a single Premier League goal. Though he was not helped by the fact that, in his own admission, he was played out of position by Newcastle boss Alan Pardew, who seemed determined to turn an old-school number nine into a creative number ten.
And anyone who has watched De Jong score goals for fun since joining PSV in 2014 will tell you just what a mistake Pardew made. Given the right service, the 28-year-old is a prolific goalscorer.
In all competitions across 2018/19, De Jong hit the back of the net 32 times. And, according to La Sexta, he has emerged as a surprising option for a Real Madrid side who are desperate to bring a prolific goalscorer to the Santiago Bernabau.
If De Jong joins Real and helps return Zinedine Zidane’s side to the top of the European game, Pardew will become even more unpopular on Tyneside.
