FC Groningen goalkeeper Etienne Vaessen has addressed the consistent rumours linking him with a move to Wrexham, insisting that they’re nothing concrete.
The goalkeeper, who turns 31 this year, is openly preparing for the next step in his career but says some of the speculation has become “quite annoying”.
Ready for a new chapter
The Suriname international is entering what appears to be the final stretch of his time at Groningen.
He joined the Dutch club on a free transfer in 2024 and has since made 58 appearances for them. That comes after a spell at RKC Waalwijk, where he made 210 appearances after joining in 2015.
His current deal at Groningen expires in 2027. That means the Dutch club have a choice to make this summer. Either extend his deal or sell him to avoid losing him on a free next summer.
Speaking to Matchday, he made it clear, though, that he is eager to move on.
“I would love to embark on a new adventure,” Voetbal Zone report him saying. “Playing with Suriname, I get to see the kinds of places I visit now, it’s truly beautiful, man.
“The football atmosphere in Mexico is absolutely wild. I went to check out the Tigres stadium; it was insane. Flares going off all around the pitch. In the Netherlands, that would lead to the match being suspended, but not over there.”
Wrexham links not concrete
Among the clubs rumoured to be monitoring Etienne Vaessen were Tigres UANL, Feyenoord and Wrexham. But the goalkeeper has poured cold water on the suggest that the Welsh club ever made a move.
“That rumour was circulating at the time, but I never actually heard anything directly from them,” he explained. “The speculation just keeps dragging on, which can be a bit annoying at times.”
He, instead, fancies a move to a bigger club in the Netherlands. In fact, he seems to have his eye on Feyenoord.
“I’m thirty now, and I consider Feyenoord, for instance, to be a fantastic club,” he concluded.
What comes next?
Etienne Vaessen has clearly outlined that he’s ready to leave Groningen this summer. Both parties appear to be bracing for interest.
The question is, if he gets a move, where he goes. Does he remain in the Netherlands or continue to broaden his football horizons? He’s clearly had a taste for the latter but won’t rule out joining a big Dutch club either.
One thing is clear is that the Wrexham rumours can be put to rest. As far as Vaessen is clear, that was never concrete.
