Dries Mertens

At 37 years old, Dries Mertens has this physical status:

Dries Mertens (Dutch pronunciation: [dris mns], born 6 May 1987), nicknamed "Ciro," is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker or winger for Süper Lig club Galatasaray and the Belgian national team.

Mertens played for Stade Leuven, Anderlecht, and Gent, among others, making his debut in the Belgian Third Division on loan to Eendracht Aalst. He joined AGOVV Apeldoorn, a Dutch Eerste Divisie club, in 2006, where he spent three years before moving to Utrecht of the Economie. Kevin Strootman and his colleague were traded to PSV Eindhoven for a total of €13 million and they both won the KNVB Cup and Johan Cruyf Shield in 2012. Mertens signed for Napoli for a €9.6 million fee in 2013 and has since made more than 300 appearances for the club. In 2014, he won the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana, and was named in the Serie A Team of the Year during the 2016-2017 season. He scored his 122nd goal for the club in 2020, overtaking Marek Hamk as Napoli's all-time top goalscorer.

Mertens made his Belgium debut in 2011 and has since made over 100 appearances for the national team. He was also one of the country's squads at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016, and UEFA Euro 2020, all contributing to the country's third-place finish in the 2018 tournament. In 2016, he was named Belgian Footballer of the Year.

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Club career

Mertens, a born in Leuven, started his playing career as a youth at the now defunct local club Stade Leuven. Anderlecht's scouts first noticed Mertens, resulting in his being given a chance to join the club's youth academy in 1998. He spent five years in Anderlecht's youth program before being released in 2003, with coaches finding him to be too short and physically fit to compete at a professional level. Mertens was signed by fellow Belgian Pro League player Gent following his release from Anderlecht. Mertens was loaned to Eendracht Aalst for the 2005-06 season after two seasons in Gent's youth academy. He excelled on his third division debut and was named Player of the Year. Gent's teaching staff, much like those at Anderlecht, were unconvinced of Mertens' little frame, so the following season, the Netherlands' AGOVV Apeldoorn, was loaned out again.

Mertens officially signed for AGOVV Apeldoorn on a season-long loan with the possibility of purchase on July 1, 2006. During a season in which he made a fan favorite among De Blauwen supporters, he saw a return to 2 goals in 35 appearances. Mertens' form prompted AGOVV, led by new boss John van den Brom, to exercise the right to sign the Belgian permanently the following season. Mertens' season came to an end with 15 goals in 38 appearances for the Dutch club, which was a payoff for the Dutch club.

Mertens was appointed new club captain for the 2008–09 Eerste Divisie season due to his popularity. Mertens excelled in his new role and contributed to a further 13 goals for the season, earning him the Golden Bull award for the most outstanding player in the Eerste Divisie. It will be his last season with the club, however, as he decided to join Ethio's side Utrecht at the end of the season. Mertens made 110 appearances in all AGOVV tournaments during his three seasons with the club, including 31 goals.

Having signed a pact with AGOVV in March 2009, Utrecht has officially ended the Mertens signing for the 2009–10 Economia season, worth €600,000 transfer fee. Mertens scored six league goals in his debut season with the club, winning the Dutch Footballer of the Year award to Luis Suárez of Ajax. He was also named Player of the Season by the Di Tommaso Trophy in Utrecht. He improved on his tally in 31 league appearances for Utrecht, including a final day hat-trick against AZ and a further three goals in his first appearance in the UEFA Europa League, as he continued his good play in the UEFA Europa League. Mertens scored 14 goals in all sports and 24 assists, as well as 24 assists. It was his last season with the club, but his form at the Stadion Galgenwaard attracted the attention of some of the league's top clubs. In 86 appearances in all leagues, Mertens' two-season stint in Utrecht produced 21 goals in 86 appearances.

Mertens signed PSV Eindhoven as a replacement for Balázs Dzsudzsudzs' leaving Balázs Dzsudzsudzs as a replacement in a joint transfer with Utrecht teammate Kevin Strootman for a total bill of €13 million. In a 3–1 loss to AZ, he scored on his debut for the club on August 7, 2011, netting PSV's only goal. Mertens scored his first hat-trick for PSV in a 6–1 loss of Excelsior later this month. Mertens' good start to season came with four goals in a 7–1 victory over Roda JC on September 24, 2011, implying he had scored 11 goals in his first 7 appearances for PSV. Mertens lost a number of teeth in a collision with Heracles goalkeeper Remko Pasveer, but he managed to score during the incident. Pasveer had one of Mertens' teeth stuck in his head for three weeks after the players collided on social media site Twitter. Mertens scored 21 goals in 33 games, their fourth highest in the Economies. In three KNVB Cup matches, including a header in the final at De Kuip, Rotterdam, leading PSV to a 3–0 victory over Heracles. He also scored three goals, including a header.

Mertens boosted the Johan Cruyf Shield when PSV defeated Ajax 4–2 to lift the Johan Cruyf Shield at the start of the following season. PSV defeated VVV-Venlo 6–0 on September 30, 2012, Mertens and Jürgen Locadia, who was on his Eligibility debut, scored hat-tricks. Mertens played 14 league goals and 16 in all competitions during PSV's season as runners-up to Ajax in the Economies. With a further 17 assists, he also helped his team support his cause. PSV accepted a contract from Napoli stating that it would be his last season in the Economy, but it would not be his last season in the Ecrisie. Mertens left Eindhoven after making 88 appearances and scoring 45 goals in two seasons.

SREN Lerby, Mertens' agent, announced on June 16 that the player had agreed to join Napoli. After a reported fee of €9.5 million was agreed with PSV, Rafael Bentez's first signing as the new Napoli boss. In a 3–0 victory over Bologna, he made his Serie A debut on August 25, 2013 as a second-half replacement for Marek Hamk. In a 2–1 away victory over Fiorentina on October 30, he scored the winner in his first goal for Napoli. Mertens scored his first brace for the club in Napoli's first game after the Serie A winter break on January 6, 2014, beating Sampdoria 2–0. In Napoli's 2–0 victory over Juventus on March 30, he scored his second goal, bringing about the team's second league loss over the eventual champions. Mertens replaced Marek Hamk in the 64th minute and went on to score in stoppage time, resulting in a 3-1 victory over Fiorentina in the Coppa Italia final on May 3rd.

Mertens won another runners' medal on December 22, 2014, after Napoli's penalty shoot-out victory over Juventus in the Supercopa. Despite being mainly used as a replacement, Matteson maintained his fine form for Napoli over the next season and a half, scoring ten goals and giving 11 assists in all competitions from 2014 to 2016, and 11 more in 2015-16. In Napoli's joint-largest ever winning margin in the Europa League, he had a brace in the previous season, winning by 5–0 over Belgian side Club Brugge. Mertens also scored a second-half hat-trick in a 6-3 victory over Bologna on April 19, 2016.

Mertens assumed a more senior role in Napoli's attack in the 2016-17 Serie A season after the auction of Gonzalo Hilik – the previous season's Capocannoniere – to rivals Juventus and a serious injury to his replacement Arkadiusz Milik. In a 5–0 win over Cagliari on December 11, he netted a hat-trick in a 5–3 victory over Torino, bringing the match one step forward. Mertens' four goals, which included the fourth fastest hat-trick in Serie A history, was the first hat-trick scored by a Napoli player since Beppe Savoldi in 1977. He went on to score seven goals in two games after Antonio Angelillo in 1958, making him the first player to score consecutive hat-tricks since Juventus' Pietro Anastasi in 1974 and the first to score seven goals in two matches since Antonio Angelillo in 1958. He was praised for his work for club and country on December 30th, winning the title for the first time in 2016, defeating Chelsea's Eden Hazard and Radja Nainggolan of Roma.

Mertens and Hamk both scored hat-tricks in a 7-1 victory over Bologna, which saw Napoli score seven away goals in a match for the first time in the club's history. He scored his 50th league goal for Napoli on Sunday and his 28th for the season overall, putting him one goal behind Golden Boot winner Edin D'eko. He maintained his goal scoring form the year after, scoring 22 goals for the campaign.

Mertens scored twice in a 3–1 UEFA Champions League victory over Red Star Belgrade on November 28, 2018 for his 100th goal for Napoli. He made his 200th appearance in Serie A for the club on April 14, 2019 over Chievo, scoring with an assist for Kalidou Koulibay's opening goal. Mertens scored in a 2–0 away victory over Frosinone on April 28th, allowing him to equal Diego Maradona's total score of 81 goals in Serie A for Napoli. He met Maradona's tally of 115 goals for the club in every competition in October 2019, defeating Red Bull Salzburg twice, becoming the club's second-highest scorer of all time, behind Ham.k. Mertens scored the first goal in an eventual 1–1 home draw against Barcelona in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League's first leg on February 25, 2020; with this goal, he tied Hamk as Napoli's all-time top goalscorer with 121 goals. Due to injury, he was later recalled early in the second half. He scored the equalizing goal in a 1–1 home draw against Inter Milan in the second leg of the 2019-20 Coppa Italia semi-finals, with Napoli's outright all-time leading goalcorer with 122 goals; the result also allowed Napoli to reach the Coppa Italia final on June 13. He signed a two-year deal with the club on June 17. He started playing in the Coppa Italia final against Juventus and was later substituted for Milik in the second half; Napoli defeated 4–2 on penalties after a 0–0 draw after regulation time.

In a 2–0 win over Roma on March 21, 2021, Mertens scored his 99th and 100th Serie A goals for Napoli.

Mertens scored his 103rd Serie A goal for Napoli in a 3–2 loss to Inter on Sunday, becoming the club's top scorer of all time in Serie A.

Dries Mertens had joined Galatasaray on a free transfer on August 8, 2022.

International career

Mertens received his first senior call up by national team coach Georges Leekens on October 1st, 2010, against Kazakhstan and Austria in the country's UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier series. Mertens will make his debut in a friendly match against Finland in Ghent on February 9th, despite the fact that he never appeared in either match. In the 125th Derby der Lage Landen, he scored his first goal for Belgium on August 15, 2012. Mertens, who came on as a replacement for Nacer Chadli, scored once and assisted twice to help Belgium beat a 2–1 deficit and win 4–2.

Mertens was selected in Marc Wilmot's 23-man squad for Belgium's 2014 FIFA World Cup team in Brazil on May 13. Mertens was the only winner in the nation's final warm-up match for the tournament on June 7th, a late winner resulting in a 1–0 victory over Tunisia. In a 2–1 victory over Algeria in Belo Horizonte, he made his first appearance in Belgium's first match of the World Cup, replacing Chadli at half time and scoring a late winner. Mertens bet with his father that he would be able to score at the tournament before the World Cup. After the game, he posted a snapshot of him shaving his father's mustache off as reward for winning the bet. He made five appearances at the World Cup, when Belgium was eliminated in the quarter-finals in the care of eventual runners-up Argentina.

Belgium kicked off their qualification bid for Euro 2016 after the World Cup. In a 6–0 win over Andorra, Mertens netted his first brace for Belgium in their opening qualifying match, netting twice in three minutes. In a 3–1 victory over Israel that guaranteed Belgium a top slot in their qualifying group for the following year, he scored one and assisted another. He was later called in Belgium's squad for the tournament's finals and appeared in all five of the country's games as Belgium lost yet again, this time to Wales.

Mertens scored five goals in Belgium's qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, including two in an 8–1 home win over Estonia on November 13, 2016. He was then named in Belgium's tournament squad and scored in the country's first match against Panama, a 3–0 victory. As Belgium finished third, defeating England in the third place play-off, he served interchangeably as a starter and substitute for the remainder of the tournament.

Mertens played his 100th match for Belgium against Denmark during the UEFA Euro 2020, on June 17th.

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