FM article

[b]A mid-season return to continental Europe has brought about a renaissance for a budding Dutch master.[/b]

Four months into the current season, [player=612783]Joos van Haaren[/player] was in a rut. At 23, the Dutch forward had already become something of a veteran of top-flight football, building a strong reputation and notching up nearly 250 games for four different clubs.

But in his fourth season at [team=2480]Aston Villa[/team], the talented striker experienced a precipitous slump in form, hitting the back of the net just once in fifteen outings. When Bundesliga side [team=2593]VfB Stuttgart[/team] came knocking, Van Haaren was eager to take up a new challenge.

Stuttgart had itself experienced its fair share of disappointment in the preceding one and a half seasons, losing two cup finals and struggling to make an impression in the league.

But since the arrival of Van Haaren, the Swabians have consolidated their position on the Bundesliga table and reached the semi-finals of the League Cup. Manager [manager=237346]Cyril Washbrook[/manager] believes that his team's progress since the signing of Van Haaren is no coincidence.

"[i]Joos has done a great job for us up front. The retirement of Edwin Lodewijks certainly left a big hole in our forward line-up, so it was really important for us to find an established striker to partner with [player=44381]Luke Armstrong[/player][/i]," Washbrook said.

"[i]If you looked purely at his career statistics, his record did not appear to be all that impressive. But you only had to see him play to know that he had the potential to be a game-changer and a match-winner. And he has definitely shown those skills in his time with us so far.[/i]"

Van Haaren has played an important role in Stuttgart's most recent victories - including [match=Game8/G8F3289226.asp]a 3-1 triumph in the League Cup quarter-finals[/match], in which he collected a brace, and [match=Game8/G8F3183162.asp]the memorable 2-1 win[/match] against league leaders HSV, in which he helped the Swabians fight back after going a goal down early on.

Those efforts were the latest in a series of impressive performances. Since arriving at the club, he has scored ten goals in fifteen games: a welcome breath of fresh air in a team that seemed earlier in the season to have an allergy to scoring. Van Haaren said that he had relished the chance to return to continental European football.

"[i]I enjoyed my time in Scotland and England, but when the opportunity to come to Stuttgart presented itself, I grabbed it with both hands[/i]," he said.

"[i]There is a great mix of youth and experience at this club, and the coaching staff are second to none. I have really been enjoying my time here, and I think that has probably been reflected in my form[/i]."

On comparisons with Lodewijks - now a member of the VfB coaching staff - Van Haaren said that he still had a long way to go before matching the feats of his legendary compatriot.

"[i]He is certainly one of the greatest players ever to compete for this club, and I think every young striker aspires to have the kind of impact that he had. At this stage I cannot even think about following in his footsteps, so my focus is just on hitting the back of the net as often as I can and helping out the team[/i]."