Shock absorber: Derrick Lucassen's stormy path to Maccabi Tel Aviv

In Holland's youth they fought for him, but after the fiasco at PSV and the unsuccessful loans he needed a lifeline for his career.

So why did he give up a reunion with the coach who nurtured him and what will he bring to Vladan Ivić's team?

Michael Yochin

05/09/2022

Monday, 05 September 2022, 09:00

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Summary: Maccabi Tel Aviv - Ironi Kiryat Shmona 1:3 (Sport1)

In the summer of 2017, Derrick Lucassen faced a dilemma.

Two of the biggest teams in the Netherlands were eager to sign what has been described as one of the rising young players in Dutch football.

Lucassen, still only 22 years old, finished a positive season in the Alkmaar uniform - the first in which the team player was safe, and the future looks rosy.

Feyenoord offered Alkmaar 6 million euros for him, Eindhoven was ready to pay "only" 5 million, but the real choice was in the hands of the player himself, and he preferred PSV.

What would have happened to him if he had pleased Alkmaar's finance director and moved to Rotterdam?

No one will be able to answer the question, but it is known that the bet on Eindhoven turned out to be a complete fiasco.

Since he left the club that raised him, no one appreciated Lucassen anymore as a player capable of developing to the highest level, he had to wander around with inquiries that did not contribute to his image, and in the end he found himself in Maccabi Tel Aviv at the age of 27. The career that promised quite a bit crashed into pieces, and in retrospect it is also worth wondering If the original expectations were justified to any extent.

In his breakout season, in 2016/17, Lucassen made headlines as a versatile player.

Although his natural position was seemingly in the center of defense, Alkmaar coach John van den Broome used him both as a right defender and a left defender, and in many cases combined him as a midfielder who was supposed to steer the game from behind.

In this position, he met Maccabi Tel Aviv twice in the group stage of the European League - the yellows then won 1:2 in the Netherlands and ended in a 0:0 draw in Netanya.

"There was no regular central midfielder in our league."

Derrick Lucassen (Photo: GettyImages, Thomas F. Starke)

A senior journalist, who covers Alkmaar on a daily basis, tells about that period: "Derrick showed good ability in some games, but there was no usual central midfielder in our league. In the Netherlands, players with good control of the ball are preferred in the center of the field who know how to develop attacks and control the pace of the game. Lucassen stood out Mainly thanks to his strength, and he excelled in physical struggles against opposing players. The brake position suited him better, but even there he was not technical enough, and at times too clumsy. One got the impression that he was unaware of his strength, and overly sharp and reckless tackles led to the absorption of unnecessary yellow and red cards."

Regarding Lucassen's character, the journalist says: "He is an introverted guy who does not like to be interviewed, and does not take criticism kindly. At one point, he stopped talking to me and accused me of allegedly writing unfairly towards him. He is the type of person who does not like to take responsibility, and looks for others to blame for their mistakes ".

This diagnosis may help to understand why Lucassen failed in Eindhoven, where he did not get along with two great former stars turned coaches - Philippe Coco and Mark van Bommel.

In light of the high amount paid for him, Lucassen expected to integrate without problems into PSV's starting line-up, but the reality was different.

After making mistakes in the loss to Hirnbein, who scored twice in 6 minutes in the opening, he was relegated to the bench, and he did not see it favorably to say the least.

Koko did not use him much, and the relationship between the two was finally shaken after Lucassen was a participant in the disgraceful 5:0 defeat against Willem II.

The team did win the championship in the season in question, but Lucassen's part was limited to 19 games, of which 9 were in the lineup.

With Van Bommel, who replaced Coco in the summer of 2018, it no longer worked at all, and after it was made clear to the defender that he was not in the plans at the end of the pre-season camp, he went on loan to Hertha Berlin.

In his few games in the Bundesliga, he was part of a defense that conceded many goals, and that adventure was short-lived anyway, as the Dutchman tore ligaments in his ankle and missed the entire second round.

Since Van Bommel was not interested in him in 2019 either, he wandered on another loan, this time to Anderlecht.

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The combination didn't work at all.

Mark Van Bommel (Photo: GettyImages, Stuart Franklin)

"Lukassen's first season in Brussels was reasonable, and he added experience, speed and physicality to a very young squad. On the other hand, Anderlecht is a team that has always liked defenders who know how to play technical football, and Lucassen did not meet the definition. He can perhaps play second fiddle to another defender with good control More on the ball and better game vision. He has a good shot, and is very strong, but his positioning can be problematic, and someone needs to cover him. Furthermore, the club thought he could play as a right-back and a left-back, but that was not the case, and these attempts did not Worked. He is too limited to play on the wing," says the journalist who covers Anderlecht.

Lucassen himself said in a rare interview with the Belgian media: "I prefer to play in the center of defense, but at this point I just want to play, so I don't complain. I complained enough at the age of 20. Defender is a position with completely different requirements, and you have to run a lot more. A defender has to run less, And I prefer it that way."

It is possible to draw certain conclusions about his personality.

At the same time, when he was asked in his homeland if he made it clear that he did not intend to return to Eindhoven.

"I made a big mistake when I chose her. I don't get along with coaches, and I don't like this city. I came back from the Hertha question, I played in the Supercup and the Champions League qualifiers, and then I was removed from the squad for no reason. I don't like Van Bommel. I don't like him, and he doesn't Me. It didn't work out with Koko either. Maybe I didn't live up to expectations, but a young player needs to be supported and put a hand on his shoulder. That's what John van den Brom did in Alkmaar. In Eindhoven I lack that. I have no desire to beat van Bommel, But I don't want to go back to him, and he's been there for a long time," he said.

"I complained enough at the age of 20."

Lucassen (Photo: GettyImages, Jeroen Meuwsen/Orange Pictures/BSR Agency)

This assessment was very wrong, by the way.

Very shortly after the interview in question, in December 2019, Van Bommel was fired from his position, but even those who replaced him saw no interest in bringing Lucassen back - what's more, he suffered a knee injury at the beginning of 2020, at the same time as the corona crisis broke out.

The German Roger Schmidt sent him in the summer of 2020 for another loan in Anderlecht, where Vincent Kompany had just arrived at the time.

The Dutch claimed that he enjoyed learning and receiving tips from the famous Belgian brakeman, but his second term in Brussels was very disappointing, and it was decided to end it in the middle of the season.

Later, the loans also came to Turkey, where Lucassen got considerable playing minutes in Kımpaşa and in the Karagomrock opening, but this indicated how much his shares were in decline.

Last summer, the defender returned to Eindhoven, rejoined the pre-season camp, and it was even reported that he managed to impress the new coach Rod van Nistelrooy.

The former striker praised him and claimed that he was in good shape, but chose to give him up anyway, for undisclosed reasons.

Lucassen sat on the bench for 3 games at the beginning of the season, didn't get a second on the grass, and realized it was time to leave once and for all.

Van den Brom, appointed with seemingly perfect timing to coach Polish champions Lech Poznań, offered him to join him and return to collaboration, but Lucassen chose not to do so - much to the surprise of those who remember how important the boss was to the advancement of his career.

Ambitions have changed.

Lucassen at Maccabi Tel Aviv (photo: official website, Maccabi Tel Aviv)

Instead, he preferred to come to Maccabi Tel Aviv, and team up with a strict and disciplinarian coach like Valdan Ivić - a decision that doesn't necessarily make sense in light of his past with Coco and Van Bommel.

5 years ago Lucassen was a kind of promise, and even the star agent Mino Raiola recruited him as a client.

After many appearances in the youth teams of Holland, he had ambitions to wear the orange shirt in the seniors, and then he was ready to settle for the Ghana national team, his parents' homeland, and according to him he held talks with the association.

All this yielded nothing, Raiola has already passed away, the World Cup will take place without him, and there is almost nothing left of the ambitions.

Will he manage to find himself again in Israel?

Time will tell, and the demands in the Premier League are lower compared to the leagues he has played in so far, but the bottom line is this is not an inspiring signing.

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