In an exclusive interview with BUzz, Bournemouth forward Justin Kluivert revealed his dream 5-a-side team composed of footballers he’s played with in his career.
How would this team perform as a 5-a-side team and how expensive would it be for him to create this club?
The first name on the team sheet was Frenkie De Jong, currently of Barcelona.
Kluivert and De Jong played together in Jong Ajax, Ajax’s youth setup, and Ajax’s first team from 2016 to 2018.
De Jong is widely considered one of the best midfielders in the world after his transfer to Barcelona and it’s no wonder Kluivert wants him running the midfield.
De Jong joined Barcelona for £63m and it’s safe to say he is worth every penny.
Keeping up this expensive theme is another Netherlands’ teammate in Virgil Van Dijk.
While they’re set to play against each other next weekend, Liverpool’s Van Dijk was the second name to sure up Kluivert’s 5-a-side defence.
They lined up on the same team during Netherlands’ international matches.
Van Dijk is regarded as one of the best Premier League centre backs of all time after his transfer to Liverpool for £70m, the experienced defender will surely keep clean sheets for Kluivert’s squad.
Next in the team none other than Justin Kluivert himself.
While technically, Kluivert has not shared a pitch with himself, it’s only fair to let him run round for his own team.
Kluivert will surely score the goals in this squad, with his fine form at the moment for Bournemouth.
The 4th addition is veteran striker Edin Dzeko, to partner Kluivert in attack.
Kluivert played alongside Dzeko during his time at Italian club Roma, between 2018 and 2020 before Kluivert left on a series of loans and Dzeko hopped to Inter Milan in 2021.
It’s fair to say Kluivert took inspiration from Dzeko for his current goalscoring ability at Bournemouth, with Dzeko acquiring more than 377 goals across a 22 year long career.
Still playing at Turkish club Fenerbahce, Dzeko’s biggest transfer fee was £31m, when he left VFL Wolfsburg to join Manchester City, making Dzeko at the time the 6th most expensive Premier League signing.
Finally, to complete the team, Kluivert chose his “football best friend” Noa Lang.
Currently applying his trade for PSV, Lang played with Kluivert on the wing at both Jong Ajax and Ajax, from 2013 to 2018.
The pair reunited and running down the wings for the 5-a-side team would be great to see, with Lang demanding a £12.5m after his 2023 transfer to PSV, a club record fee
Eagle-eyed readers will notice that this 5-a-side team doesn’t have a goalkeeper, however, Kluivert came prepared.
Three bench players were mentioned for his 5-a-side squad, all three current Bournemouth players.
Antoine Semenyo, Milos Kerkez and Kepa join Kluivert’s squad for a fee of £10m, £15m and a whopping £72 million respectively, as Kepa is still the most expensive goalkeeper in history after his move from Athletic club to Chelsea in 2018.
Not a bad set of players for the bench, surely if a goal – or keeper – is needed, the backup will perform well.
Overall, Kluivert’s 5-a-side squad will cost £273.5m, and definitely won’t struggle to score goals.
Depending on whether Kepa us starting or not, they may struggle with conceding goals, but Van Dijk might have something to say about that.
Kluivert, Lang and De Jong sending balls to Dzeko however is a sight surely everyone wishes they could see.
Pitch image by Pixabay, smirnoff-nw.
Kluivert image by afcb.co.uk.
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