Alhassan Yusuf credits Mark van Bommel for Royal Antwerp rise

Nigerian international Alhassan Yusuf has credited his impressive start to the 2022/23 league season at Royal Antwerp to the exploits and arrival of Dutch coach Mark van Bommel.

The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich midfielder took charge of the Belgian club in May 2022 after managerial stints with Wolfsburg in the German Bundesliga and PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch Eredivisie.

Alhassan Yusuf has seen his stock rise under Van Bommel, having nailed down a starting spot in the Royal Antwerp squad just one year after joining from Swedish side IFK Gothenburg.

While commenting on his rise to prominence within the Royal Antwerp squad, Alhassan Yusuf attributed his increased game time to the arrival of 45-year-old Van Bommel.

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The 22-year-old uncapped Nigerian player explained that with the new manager came a change in how Royal Antwerp played and Van Bommel gives him a lot of specific information about how he wanted to play.

Yusuf told De Zondag as reported by voetbalkrant: "I think about the coach, because the other players are still there. The system has changed and the way of playing has also changed.

"Every coach comes with instructions about how he wants to play and how he sees you as a player. Van Bommel talks to me a lot. Every day. He's trying to give me information that makes it really easy for me in the matches."

The Kano-born defensive midfielder also noted that Van Bommel is a lot more focused on playing as a team rather than the individuals in the team.

Despite his not-so-large frame, Yusuf suggested that he has excelled in a defensive midfield position because the manager is more focused on a ball-playing midfielder than a physical presence. 

“The new coach is very good at that: putting the team together and taking away the individualism. He is working on that every day, on and off the field," Yusuf explained.

"It depends on the vision of the coach which profile he prefers in that position: does he want to play football there or put a big and strong boy?"

Alhassan Yusuf has already made 11 appearances for Royal Antwerp this season, featuring in six (6) UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers as well as five (5) Belgian Pro League matches. 

He has contributed two (2) assists in his five (5) matches in the Belgian league this season.