Dean Huijsen - A star is born

05/21/2025 1546

Bournemouth’s Dean Huijsen is a new Real Madrid player after the Galacticos elected to trigger his release clause, buying him for essentially €60 million.

Is a 20-year-old center-back, with only one serious season under his belt, really that good for Real to see him as a solution for the next decade?

Yes, Huijsen really is that good.

We're talking about a 197 cm tall center-back who has no trouble controlling the aerial game. This season, he won 62 percent of his aerial duels and cleared 6.4 threats per game in front of his goal, mostly by clearing crosses.

He is excellent during set-pieces, defends the near-post zone well, and Bournemouth had the best control in his area during set-pieces compared to all other Premier League teams. He’s also relatively fast and can play in a high defensive line pushed up to midfield.

In fact, for his height, he is incredibly quick, because it’s rare to see a player of his stature move so fluidly.

Essentially, Huijsen plays like a much shorter player. His traits are similar to those of Joško Gvardiol or other modern center-backs who step out of the back line and press in between the lines.

That’s exactly what Huijsen does: he’s fantastic at reading the game, aggressively stepping toward the ball, and preventing opposing midfielders positioned between the lines from receiving the ball and turning toward his goal. He has excellent timing when making challenges, great vision, and tactical awareness to know when he can step out.

He still gets too many yellow cards, and that’s something he definitely needs to improve, but we’re talking about a proactive center-back with the kind of skills top-tier teams demand—those that don’t have the luxury of defending in the comfort of a deep block.

Clubs like Real often leave their center-backs exposed, and Huijsen handles those situations excellently.

Perhaps the best example of his activity is the fact that he averages 1.7 interceptions per match and is very effective at turning recovered balls into attacking plays.

No center-back in the Premier League gains more ground with his passes after winning or intercepting the ball than Huijsen. Just as his defensive play suits the style of big clubs, so does his play in building up attacks.

Bournemouth plays with a back four, and Huijsen usually plays as the left-sided center-back. Since he’s right-footed, that would usually mean opponents try to trap him with pressing. And they did in the first few matches, but quickly gave up—because Huijsen is an excellent technician.

He’s right-footed but can play with his left as well. Even more important is how well he reads situations and how skillfully he uses his body orientation to open up passing lanes.

This season, Huijsen averages 42.5 accurate passes per league match. Of those 42.5 passes, as much as 47 percent are made in the opponent’s half, which clearly shows that he doesn’t just hold the ball in sterile possession in front of his goalkeeper acting as a safety valve—instead, he brings it into the opponent’s half and tries to create an advantage.

He also averages 4.1 long balls per match, usually switching the play to the opposite side, and this season he has created three big chances for his teammates.

Putting aside the fact that Real’s back line has been devastated this season and that Carlo Ancelotti has been patching together the defence however he could—the point is that Huijsen is 20 years old and brings the kind of aggression to Real that can compensate for the passivity of the forward line and its lack of defensive contribution. He also offers stability in possession that can partially make up for what the midfield has lost with the absence of Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić.

From that perspective, not only is Huijsen truly good enough for Real to buy him after just one season. In today’s market, even €60 million seems like a bargain. Real has landed one of the three best center-backs in the world under the age of 23.

Home team
Away team

Probability %

1X2

Pred

Correct score

Avg. goals

Weather conditions

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Score

Live
coef.

EPL

Bournemouth Leicester City 25/05/2025 17:00

423325

12-0

2 - 0

2.31

65°F

-303

-303 +450 +700 down no down

FT

2 - 0(0 - 0)

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