He was the new Robben! Bundesliga flop now living his World Cup dream | OneFootball

Tahith Chong – does that name ring a bell? If you're a real Bundesliga nerd or a Werder Bremen fan, the penny may already have dropped. The 26-year-old played for Werder Bremen for half a year from August 2020 to January 2021.

Five years later, Chong will face the German national football team with Curaçao at the World Cup tonight at 7 p.m. But actually, he was supposed to be the new Arjen Robben lining up for the Netherlands at the World Cup. Excuse me?

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On paper, that claim sounds pretty ordinary at first. Curaçao has belonged to the Netherlands since colonial times, and even though it has been an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 2010, all residents hold Dutch citizenship. Don’t worry, that doesn’t automatically make Chong the new Arjen Robben. It’s more about his footballing talent. Or rather, to correct ourselves: talent that was once considered exceptional.

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When Chong joined Werder Bremen on loan in 2020, he still carried the reputation of a wonderkid. Having come through the youth ranks at Feyenoord Rotterdam, the midfielder, known for his dribbling and finishing and for cutting in from the wing to the center at a young age just like Robben once did, had already made his way to Manchester United at 16. While the Dutch press had long since picked Chong as Robben’s designated successor, things initially went well for him at the Red Devils too.

Despite a serious knee injury at the start of his move, the midfielder quickly became a key player in United’s U18s and from the 2017/18 season onward played increasingly for the Red Devils’ U23s. United even awarded Chong the 'Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year Award' for the club’s best youth player of the season. Previous winners include Ryan Giggs and Marcus Rashford. Unlike Giggs and Rashford, however, Chong had not become a United star by his mid-20s.

“I’ve always felt like a free spirit,” the now 26-year-old told 'Deichstube' when he arrived at Werder Bremen. And that is probably exactly where Chong’s biggest problem lies. Coaches repeatedly accused him of lacking tactical understanding. Too many mistakes under pressure and not enough physicality caused major disappointment both in England and at Werder. Once hailed as a wonderkid and the future Robben, Chong now “only” plays in England’s second division.

After suffering a torn meniscus at the start of the season, he was limited to brief appearances for Sheffield United in the campaign just ended. In 21 matches, Tahith Chong recorded one assist and failed to score. Maybe he’ll do that for “The Blue Wave” at the World Cup?

In six appearances for his homeland so far, Chong has already scored three times. Most recently in the 4-1 friendly defeat to Scotland at the end of May. Here, he seems to bring exactly the right amount of free spirit that his team needs. Playing for Curaçao means everything to the attacker, as he told 'FIFA.com'.

“It just felt like home. Every summer and practically every vacation, I go back. When the opportunity came, the decision was clear: you go where you feel at home.”

It was only last year that Chong decided in favor of Curaçao. Before that, the former wonderkid was still hoping for a call-up to Oranje. Still, at the Blue Wave, Chong is the star above all simply because he has the second-highest market value in the team (€3.5 million). According to 'Transfermarkt.de', only PSV defender Armando Obispo is valued higher (€4 million).

He is the only current international born in Curaçao. That is where he learned to play football after the 2006 World Cup.

“I watched the final between Italy and France with Zinédine Zidane’s headbutt. Back then I supported France – I still don’t know why – and I cried after the game. After that, I told my father: I’m going to play football.”

So 20 years later, Tahith Chong really is playing at a World Cup in North America. Who knows what else it may still have in store for Curaçao’s wonderkid.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

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