Most of the top rated players in terms of goals, assists and the rest in the Eredivisie all play for the usual suspects. However, when we look at chances created, as recorded by FotMob, one player really stands out amongst the rest of the so called ‘big boys’. PEC Zwolle’s 29-year-old Danish midfielder Younes Namli currently sits second behind Joey Veerman of PSV for chances created this season. The top five on this list has three from PSV and one from Feyenoord (Quinten Timber). In 22 matches this season, Namli has created an impressive 53 chances.
Now, there is no chance that he will catch Veerman who has a ridiculous 87 chances created at an average of five per match, but Namli numbers certainly deserve some praise. He creates just over two chances per 90 for PEC Zwolle, but only has four assists. His xA is 5.62, so he probably needs a bit more help from his teammates. As a side, PEC Zwolle have scored 31 goals in 22 games this season and sit in 10th place. Lennart Thy leads the side with nine goals so far this season.
For Namli, he has certainly had a very strong first season for the side since making his return. Back in 2017 he spent two seasons with the side, playing 72 times and scoring 11 goals before joining Russian side Krasnodar. He already has more goals (four) this season than he did at all during his spell with Sparta Rotterdam last time out. He only needs one more assist to match the five he got during his one full Eredivisie season.
With his contract up in the summer, PEC Zwolle would be expected to try and keep him after a strong 2023/2024 campaign. However, his numbers and performances will certainly have alerted a number of other Eredivisie sides.
