Despite Norwich City’s new signing Leroy Fer being described in some quarters as the “new Patrick Vieira”, the most similar type of player to the Dutchman is current Everton icon Marouane Fellaini. Both have good physical presence, dynamic box-to-box energy and can play anywhere from full-back to second striker. And there is every reason to believe that like Fellaini, Fer can be a success in the English Premier League.
Last January, Fer was very close to becoming Fellaini’s new team-mate at Goodison Park, but the deal between Everton and FC Twente fell through due to the Toffees’ concerns about an ongoing knee problem suffered by the midfielder. Twente rejected Everton’s offer to restructure the transfer, with Fer going on to feature prominently for the Dutch side in the remainder of their Eredivisie campaign.
Fer had to wait only six months to realise his Premier League dream and this summer signed a four-year deal with Norwich. He followed Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Javier Garrido, Nathan Redmond, Martin Olsson and Carlo Nash as the Canaries’ sixth signing.
The all-action midfielder was one of the few Oranje stars who shone at the recent European Under-21 Championship in Israel, scoring twice despite being a regular bench warmer. Jong Holland’s coach Cor Pot deployed the then-Twente star as a shadow striker, completing the player’s development from a defensive midfielder – the role he occupied when taking his first steps in professional football – into an all-round midfielder, who can play even further forward.
Fer first sampled life in Feyenoord’s starting line-up in the 2007/08 season as a right-back or defensive midfielder. One season later however, coach Gertjan Verbeek positioned Fer as a central attacking midfielder in a 4-3-3 system, before his successor Mario Been pulled the player back to carry out more defensive duties.
While under Been, Feyenoord had a disappointing season and finished tenth, Fer was one of the few not criticised by fans or the Dutch media. His versatility, fighting spirit and tactical awareness made him a key man for the Rotterdam side. At the time, then-captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst stated that Fer was “indispensable” to Feyenoord and, at the age of just 19, he was named the club’s vice-captain.
In the summer of 2011, Fer left De Kuip after 12 years with Feyenoord and more than 100 appearances for the first team. His destination was FC Twente, who had splashed out €5.5m to secure his services; the midfielder explained he had chosen the Tukkers to play regular European football. Fer’s first few months in Enschede were unimpressive however, mainly due to a clash, especially on tactical issues, with coach Co Adriaanse.
Things improved for Fer with the coming of former England manager Steve McClaren and even though Twente could not manage better than a sixth-place finish, the midfielder enjoyed his best goalscoring campaign so far, hitting the back of the net eleven times. Fer showed great aerial ability and timing to meet the ball first from goal-kicks and free-kicks. Last September, he underwent surgery for damage to his left knee after taking a knock during Holland’s 2-0 home defeat of Turkey in a 2014 World Cup qualifier. It was Fer’s second cap after a friendly played against the Ukraine under Bert van Marwijk on 11th August, 2010.
Fer’s roots lie in Curacao. His grandfather was an amateur footballer in the country, while his father was a baseball player and a musician in a brass band. The midfielder, though born and raised in Zoetermeer, south Holland, still has strong connections with his parents' homeland and mulled for a long time over whether to represent the Oranje or Curacao on the international stage. “It was my heart versus my head”, explained Fer. “I go to the Netherlands Antilles twice a year to see my grandparents, I have a lot of friends there and I feel at home. My father is my idol and his story is an example for all Antillean people. He came to Holland and started to work as a fireman, now he is the chief of the security service of Rotterdam Haven District. If you always do your best, you finally make it.”
The midfielder did his best to get into Feyenoord’s academy, the most productive youth system in Holland, alongside Ajax’s. Since 2005, the Dutch club have generated almost €30m by selling homegrown players such as Royston Drenthe, Luc Castaignos, Georginio Wijnaldum, Glenn Loovens and Jerson Cabral. With the latter, Fer became Under-17 Dutch champions in the 2005/06 season. Fifteen of that squad have become professionals, while seven are currently internationals (Fer, Jordy Clasie, Jeffrey Bruma, Kostas Lamprou) or in the Under-21s (Cabral, Kelvin Leerdam, Rajiv van la Parra).
Now the time has come for Fer himself to take another step forward. While certain to be able to adapt to the physical nature of the Premier League, Norwich will soon discover that they have signed more than just a midfield enforcer.
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