Steven van der Sloot is the man of the moment for S04’s U23s. Will he make his debut in the 2nd division on Saturday in Düsseldorf? That’s what the Dutchman himself says.
Steven van der Sloot has come under the spotlight at FC Schalke 04’s U23s. The young right-back from the Netherlands with roots in Cameroon has earned this through strong performances in the Regionalliga West. The 21-year-old is one of the absolute top performers in Jakob Fimpel’s team.
The Dutch youth international has played in all 16 matches so far this season. On Wednesday, during the Royal Blues’ test in Eindhoven, he was assessed by coach Karel Geraerts for 90 minutes in the 2-0 win against PSV. Afterwards there was praise for van der Sloot, who comes from the Feyenoord Rotterdam talent factory and then moved to Ajax Amsterdam at U19 level.
He then moved to the club’s U23s. However, he was initially unable to establish himself at “Jong Ajax” and found his way to Schalke in the summer of 2022. There he was to continue his development in peace with the S04 U23s. After playing 19 games in his first season, he is now an undisputed regular.
He could now make his first appearance in the professional squad for Schalke’s away game at Fortuna Düsseldorf next Saturday. “Schalke brought me in for the second team. But my goal is to become a professional. I’ve worked my whole life for that. That’s why it would be nice if I could make my debut there,” said van der Sloot confidently after the U23s’ match against Fortuna Köln.
Need at right back – “will show my best”
He could benefit from the fact that there is a need in that position at the Knappen, as Henning Matriciani has had a terrible season there so far and it is not yet clear whether the injured regular defender Cedric Brunner will be fit for the game in the state capital. “I didn’t speak to the coach after the game, but he said things like: Well done,” explained van der Sloot in English.
If it doesn’t work out now, he wants to keep working: “I’ll show my best and then we’ll see what happens. “