At the age of 85, Piet de Visser is still at work as a super-scout, although his job has changed completely in the past few weeks.
Due to his age and medical history, De Visser believes Covid-19 would ‘finish’ him, and he’s therefore taking self isolation advice very seriously indeed.
De Telegraaf say his wings have been clipped, and he’s gone from flying around the world to watching old matches on his TV. The Dutch newspaper quote the recruiter as saying: “I have good friends in Ecuador and they are all at home. It is also very bad there. Just like in Brazil and the United States. I just got back from that. I had made a scouting trip for Chelsea through Argentina and Brazil and visited America on the way back. I was just in time to go into isolation here at home in Oisterwijk.”
Chelsea have a long record of working with De Visser and a long record of targeting players in South America, so his recent trip would suggest those transfer plans haven’t changed.
Now, De Visser will need to judge players from previous matches, and he seems determined to do so, not wanting to to stop his work. With help from his neighbours, and endless matches available on TV, the scout is keeping himself busy.
The Premier League club, meanwhile, are more concerned about his health, with De Visser saying: “Chelsea is also calling me all the time to take good care of myself and stay indoors. They want me to get through it well and that I can start working again.”
We’re sure everyone reading will echo those thoughts: Keep watching matches safely Piet!
