The UEFA Youth League 2022-23 season concluded recently with AZ U-19 winning the tournament. From among the players that generated the most interest in the tournament, AZ’s striker Mexx Meerdink was perhaps the most conspicuous.
Meerdink was one of the main factors that allowed AZ to win this prestigious tournament, especially with his goal-scoring abilities. He scored a total of 9 goals in 6 matches, which made him a joint top scorer in the tournament, along with Panathaikos’ Bilal Mazhar.
In the final match against Hadjuk Split, AZ won 5-0, with Meerdink scoring two of his team’s 5 goals. These two goals were scored only after coming off the bench, as he had not been 100% fit, and had missed the semi-final against Sporting CP.
However, it was not only about the final match, as the player’s goal-scoring run continued throughout the tournament. He opened his goals account in the UEFA Youth League with a goal against Shamrock, but his more noteworthy goals came against the youth teams of Barcelona and Real Madrid. Against FC Barcelona, the player scored two goals in the round of 16, while against Real Madrid, in the quarter-finals, he scored another goal.
Owing to these strong performances, he has generated interest of the biggest clubs in Europe. FC Barcelona have been interested in the player since he scored the double against them, and Jordi Cryuff has specifically set his eyes upon him to continue inspecting his growth and development in the coming years.
Barcelona’s hopes of having the talented youngster in their ranks received a boost recently. After his victorious campaign in the Youth League, the player appeared in a T.V. program and openly showed his desire to play for Barcelona in the future as per recent reports from Mundo Deportivo.
Thus, if his developmental trajectory remains in line with his current growth, FC Barcelona can get another talented gem to further strengthen their forward line in the future.
