Teun Koopmeiners

Summary

Teun Koopmeiners (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈtøːŋ ˈkoːpmɛi̯nərs]; born 28 February 1998) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Atalanta and the Netherlands national team.

Teun Koopmeiners
Koopmeiners with Atalanta in 2021
Personal information
Full name Teun Koopmeiners[1]
Date of birth (1998-02-28) 28 February 1998 (age 26)[2]
Place of birth Castricum, Netherlands
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Atalanta
Number 7
Youth career
Vitesse '22
2009–2016 AZ
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2018 Jong AZ 25 (3)
2017–2021 AZ 116 (35)
2021– Atalanta 88 (24)
International career
2015 Netherlands U17 4 (0)
2015–2016 Netherlands U18 3 (0)
2016–2017 Netherlands U19 13 (0)
2017–2018 Netherlands U20 5 (0)
2018–2021[3] Netherlands U21 17 (4)
2020– Netherlands 21 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:25, 10 March 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22 March 2024

Having represented the Netherlands at various youth levels, Koopmeiners was called up to the senior team's preliminary UEFA Nations League squad in August 2020.[4] He was later part of their squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Club career edit

AZ edit

Koopmeiners grew up in Castricum, North Holland, and took his first steps in football as a youth player for the local club, Vitesse '22.[5] In 2009, he joined the AZ youth academy at under-12 level.[6] He eventually progressed through the ranks, and as part of the club's reserve team, Jong AZ, he became champion of the Dutch third division in the 2016–17 season, reaching promotion to the Eerste Divisie.[7]

On 18 August 2017, Koopmeiners made his professional debut for Jong AZ in a 3–1 away win over FC Den Bosch.[8] He made his first team-debut on 1 October, coming on as a substitute for Alireza Jahanbakhsh for the final 30 minutes of a 4–0 home loss to Feyenoord.[9] At the end of the 2017–18 season, AZ ended in third place, and thereby qualified for Europa League. In his first professional season, he made 26 league appearances in which he scored one goal.[10]

On 1 March 2020, Koopmeiners played a 70-metre pass to set up Oussama Idrissi for AZ's second goal in a 2–0 win against Ajax which put his side level on points with Ajax.[11] During the 2019–20 AZ Alkmaar season Koopmeiners scored 16 goals in all competitions in 42 appearances,[12] helping his side finish second in the Eredivisie on goal difference behind the Champions AFC Ajax.[13]

He scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season against Viktoria Plzen on 26 August 2020 in the UEFA Champions League qualifier 3–1 victory.[14] On 14 January 2021, Koopmeiners scored two goals, including an audacious backheel flick, to help his side clinch an 3–1 away victory against PSV Eindhoven.[15]

Atalanta edit

On 30 August 2021, Koopmeiners signed for Serie A club Atalanta for a reported fee of €12 million.[16] He made his debut on 11 September in the home match against Fiorentina, as a late substitute for Matteo Pessina.[17]

On 1 September 2022, Koopmeiners scored a hat-trick in a 3–1 Serie A victory over Torino.[18]

International career edit

Koopmeiners made four appearances for the Netherlands national under-17 team,[19] as well as two appearances for the national under-18 team. As part of the under-19s, he played at the 2017 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, reaching the semi-finals and only losing to Portugal. At under-19 level, Koopmeiners made 13 appearances.[19] After five appearances for the Netherlands Under-20 team,[19] he made his debut for the national under-21 team on 22 March 2018 in a 4–1 loss in Doetinchem to the Belgium U21.[20]

On 19 August 2020, Koopmeiners was called up to the senior Netherlands national team by caretaker manager Dwight Lodeweges in the preliminary squad for the UEFA Nations League fixtures against Poland and Italy.[4] In October, he made his debut in a friendly match against Mexico.[21] He made his competitive debut in a World Cup Qualification match against Turkey, contributing with an assist in a 6-1 victory. He scored his first senior goal for the Oranje in a UEFA Nations League match against Wales. In the 2022 World Cup quarter-final against Argentina, known as the Battle of Lusail, Koopmeiners assisted former AZ teammate Wout Weghorst with a clever free-kick routine in the 11th minute of stoppage time to send the fixture to extra time. He then scored his penalty in the subsequent shoot-out but could not stop the Netherlands from being eliminated 4-3.[22]

Style of play edit

Koopmeiners can play as a defensive midfielder or central midfielder. He can also play as a centre-back.[23] He is known for his leadership qualities, and captained AZ Alkmaar despite his young age.[24]

Personal life edit

His younger brother Peer is also a professional footballer; Peer still plays for AZ.[25]

Career statistics edit

Club edit

As of match played 14 March 2024[10]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Jong AZ 2016–17 Tweede Divisie 19 2 19 2
2017–18 Eerste Divisie 6 1 6 1
Total 25 3 25 3
AZ 2017–18 Eredivisie 26 1 5 0 31 1
2018–19 Eredivisie 32 8 4 0 1[b] 1 37 9
2019–20 Eredivisie 25 11 3 1 14[b] 4 42 16
2020–21 Eredivisie 31 15 1 0 8[c] 2 40 17
2021–22 Eredivisie 2 0 0 0 2[b] 0 4 0
Total 116 35 13 1 25 7 154 43
Atalanta 2021–22 Serie A 30 4 2 0 11[d] 0 43 4
2022–23 Serie A 33 10 2 0 35 10
2023–24 Serie A 25 10 2 2 7[b] 0 34 12
Total 88 24 6 2 18 0 112 26
Career total 229 62 19 3 43 7 291 72
  1. ^ Includes KNVB Cup, Coppa Italia
  2. ^ a b c d Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  4. ^ Five appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League

International edit

As of match played 22 March 2024[26]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Netherlands 2020 1 0
2021 2 0
2022 12 1
2023 5 1
2024 1 0
Total 21 2
Netherlands score listed first, score column indicates score after each Koopmeiners goal.[26]
List of international goals scored by Teun Koopmeiners
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 8 June 2022 Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales 7   Wales 1–0 2–1 2022–23 UEFA Nations League A
2 21 November 2023 Algarve Stadium, Algarve, Portugal 18   Gibraltar 3–0 6–0 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying

Honours edit

AZ

References edit

  1. ^ a b "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™: List of Players: Netherlands" (PDF). FIFA. 15 November 2022. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  2. ^ "Teun Koopmeiners | Netherlands | UEFA Nations League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  3. ^ "OnsOranje". OnsOranje (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Voorlopige Oranjeselectie bestaat uit 32 spelers" [Provisional Oranje squad consists of 32 players]. KNVB Media (in Dutch). 19 August 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Teun Koopmeiners maakt competitiedebuut bij AZ". vitesse22.nl (in Dutch). 3 October 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  6. ^ "Spelerspagina van AZ". az.nl. AZ Alkmaar. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  7. ^ "Jong AZ promoveert naar Jupiler League dankzij titel in Tweede Divisie". nu.nl (in Dutch). 1 April 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  8. ^ "FC Den Bosch vs. Jong AZ – Football Match Report". ESPN. 18 August 2017. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
  9. ^ "AZ vs. Feyenoord – 1 October 2017". Soccerway.
  10. ^ a b "T. Koopmeiners". Soccerway.
  11. ^ "Dank 70-Meter-Pass: Alkmaar holt Ajax in der Eredivisie ein". kicker (in German). 1 March 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  12. ^ "Games played by Teun Koopmeiners in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  13. ^ "AZ Alkmaar's title chase is over but is this Europe's best academy?". Sky Sports. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  14. ^ "Champions League qualifiers round-up: AZ Alkmaar survive scare to progress". Sky Sports. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  15. ^ "AZ verslaat PSV in Eindhoven: 1-3". RTL Nieuws. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  16. ^ Mork, Martin (30 August 2021). "Official: Koopmeiners arrive at Atalanta". Football Italia. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  17. ^ "Con la Fiorentina esordio di Koopmeiners". Atalanta (in Italian). 12 September 2021.
  18. ^ Campanale, Susy (1 September 2022). "Atalanta 3–1 Torino: Koopmeiners hat-trick takes top spot". Football Italia.
  19. ^ a b c "Koopmeiners – Profiel – OnsOranje". onsoranje.nl.
  20. ^ "Matchdata – OnsOranje". onsoranje.nl.
  21. ^ "Mexico spoil De Boer debut with deserved win". Reuters. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  22. ^ "World Cup: Argentina reach semi-finals after dramatic penalty-shootout win". bbc.co.uk.
  23. ^ "The 50 Eredivisie U21 Stars To Watch 2018/19: Teun Koopmeiners". KNVB Media. 5 August 2018. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  24. ^ "Teun Koopmeiners, de geboren leider van AZ". De Volkskrant. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  25. ^ Koopmeiners grapt over broertje: 'Door jou heb ik straks een voorletter op m'n rug!' - Voetbal International (in Dutch)
  26. ^ a b "Teun Koopmeiners". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 7 September 2021.

External links edit

  • Profile at the Atalanta B.C. website
  • Teun Koopmeiners at WorldFootball.net