Steijn praises old acquaintance Mijnans: ‘He is from a kind of dying breed’ | OneFootball

Sparta Rotterdam coach Maurice Steijn was impressed by the development of Sven Mijnans following their defeat to AZ Alkmaar. The former Sparta player scored the winning goal on Sunday afternoon at Het Kasteel.

Mijnans returned to familiar territory as captain of AZ. The 24-year-old midfielder had worked with Steijn in his first term as Sparta coach.

The coach who had returned to Spangen after a brief stint with Ajax was complimentary about the game-winner. Work rate and self-improvement were the watchwords:

“Sven is a player who, in the period that he played under me, wants to get better every day. That is a kind of dying breed. (…) Yes, I don’t see that always and everywhere. Sven is a great example: always fit, always training hard, always getting the most out of it. That is rewarded by being captain at AZ. I am very proud of Sven.”

Steijn still occasionally contacts Mijnans, who moved from Sparta to AZ in January 2023. The midfielder played 23 official matches for Sparta in the period that Steijn was in charge. He scored three times in those matches.

The fact that Mijnans scored the winning goal for AZ did not hurt the man from The Hague any more. In fact: “If someone has to score the winning goal, it should be him.”

GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield