“I made the right choices” – Newcastle star delighted with transfer, can ‘still take a lot of steps’

Newcastle United defender Sven Botman has admitted his delight with how his career has panned out so far, after making the bold choice to leave Ajax as a youngster.

The centre-back has been speaking to Trouw in his homeland, relayed by Soccer News, after a successful season with the Magpies that finished with Champions League football secured for next season.

The 23-year-old has been a key player for Newcastle since arriving in a €37m deal from LOSC Lille in the summer as part of the Magpies big spend on improving their squad.

He had been a long-term target for the club, who also tried to sign him in the January transfer window six months earlier but found the French side reluctant to do a deal.

They eventually got their man and he’s been an ever present since, racking up 36 appearances in the Premier League and featuring in 91% of all the minutes played.

The Dutchman is more than comfortable at Premier League level, something which has further enhanced a reputation that had been growing since his youth days at Ajax.

He started his career at the Dutch giants and worked his way up their various youth levels from 2009 to 2020 but never made a senior appearance for them.

That led to the bold decision to leave and join Lille in 2020 in search of regular first-team football, something he found in abundance in his two years in France and ultimately led to him impressing enough that Newcastle came calling in the summer.

It’s a decision he now looks back on happily, insisting it was clearly the right choice for him as he aims to establish himself on the international scene next.

“I was realistic enough to realize that I was not going to get much playing time,” he said.

“In hindsight you can say that I made the right choices. I think that in the Netherlands people sometimes look too much at how good defenders are on the ball.

“But maybe it’s the Dutch mentality and football school that also brought me a lot. Playing the ball to the right colour is also important.

“I can still take a lot of steps. The next one is making my debut for the Netherlands. I’m almost 24, so it’s not going very fast. But everything in its time. The goal is to make my debut, I’m ready if the trainer needs me. But I am calmly waiting for my moment, and I am not in a hurry.”