Why Hull City offering Jordy de Wijs a new deal would be a masterstroke
According to Sky Sports, Hull City have opened negotiations with centre-back Jordy de Wijs over a new long-term deal, with the Tigers keen to secure the Dutchman’s future at the KCOM Stadium.
As per the report, Hull City have offered a new deal to Jarrod Bowen, who is the subject of interest from Premier League clubs, Newcastle United, Crystal Palace and Southampton, while talks are also underway with Jordy de Wijs and Kamil Grosicki.
The Tigers currently face the risk of losing the services of several key first-team players who are all out of contract at the end of the ongoing season, including the likes of Bowen, Grosicki, Kevin Stewart, Jackson Irvine, Markus Henriksen, Stephen Kingsley, Robbie McKenzie and Brendan Fleming.
De Wijs, who completed a move to East Yorkshire from Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven last summer, has a contract until 2021. The Belgian-born, Dutch-bred, centre-back spent nine years in the youth system of PSV before making the step up to the reserve team.
However, he only made 5 senior competitive appearances for his boyhood club across all competitions and spent time on loan at fellow Eredivisie outfit Excelsior before Hull City came calling for his services.
The 24-year-old started as many as 30 games in the Championship in his debut season at the KCOM Stadium the last term and the former Dutch U21 international has started all but one of the Tigers’ first 15 league fixtures so far this season.
Hull City have always been a mid-table outfit in the Championship but De Wijs has been one of the most consistent performers at the back for the Tigers.
Along with Reece Burke, the Dutchman has formed a formidable pairing at the heart of the backline.
As per whoscored, Jordy de Wijs has racked up impressive numbers of 4.1 aerial duels, 1.7 tackles, 2 interceptions, 7.6 clearances and 3 successful long balls per game in the Championship this season, figures which certainly justify the club’s decision to extend his stay beyond 2021.
Taking a closer look at those numbers, de Wijs has won 58 out of a possible 90 duels in the air, which amounts to a percentage of 64.44, while also coming out on top on 24 occasions out of a possible 29 in terms of tackles (82.75%). Furthermore, he has just accumulated 3 yellow cards so far.
Hull City opening contract talks with Jarrod Bowen, Jordy de Wijs and Kamil Grosicki is certainly a brilliant move.
Verdict
As for de Wijs, the Dutchman is at a crucial stage in his career at 24. Standing at 6ft 2in with a towering frame, the 24-year-old seems capable of making the step up to the Premier League.
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To that end, Jordy de Wijs still has his best years ahead of him and it is not difficult to see why he could be central to Hull City’s hopes of making it back to the top-flight. That being said, the Tigers should finalise a new deal for him at the earliest.