The athlete to watch | The surprise goal-scoring king is a Dutchman whose name you don't even know.

In recent years, a very specific type of footballer has begun to gain significant prominence. Traditionally, teams sought players who were experts in their positions: defenders who defended, midfielders who created play, and forwards who scored . But those axioms have been shattered for several decades , and many clubs are looking for profiles who, in addition to being versatile, are capable of providing other elements on the pitch.

Thus, highly valued are those footballers who are capable of playing successfully in very different positions, but also those who, while performing in their position, contribute to other statistics that, a priori, should not be included. And, in this case, the preferred profile is the attacking midfielder , that footballer who belongs to the second line, who creates and is inventive in the final meters but who, due to his qualities, is also a finisher and is capable of scoring many goals .

In recent years, the greatest example of this type of player is Jude Bellingham . He works in midfield, organizes the attack when the ball passes through his feet, and also has a surprising ability from the second line that allows him to get into attacking positions with clarity and, thus, contribute to Real Madrid's goals. But he is not the only player of this style: Jamal Musiala (Bayern), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Florian Wirtz (Leverkusen), and Vitinha (PSG) are other examples.

However, despite all the big names on the list, none of them are the hottest newcomers in European football . There's a 23-year-old footballer, not a household name on the old continent, who has become one of the breaths of fresh air in the Netherlands . Sem Steijn , quietly but through hard work, is smashing the goal tally this season with Twente. So much so that, with 24 goals and 5 assists in 30 matches , he's the top scorer in the Eredivisie.

A skilled player with excellent ball distribution in attack and, above all, a unique intuition for emerging from the second line , Steijn is also a player with a precious ball striking ability. He's not well known outside the Netherlands, but despite his youth, he's showing great skill at his feet . He's the typical small midfield player (1.73 meters) who hides a lot of skill when controlling the ball.

Of those 24 goals, 7 have come from the penalty spot, but that doesn't hide the fact that he's scored another 17 in the competition . In other words, he's got 9 more than Palmer , 12 more than Musiala, 14 more than Wirtz , and 16 more than Bellingham in the league . It's true that the Eredivisie is a step below the top five European competitions, but it's no less true that his ability to score a goal per game has already led to him being signed by Feyenoord .

In the Netherlands, they're clear about which player he resembles in terms of style, qualities, and playing style: Jari Litmanen . What's more, his brilliant season is poised to make him the first midfielder to win the Eredivisie top scorer title since the Finn did it in the 1990s. He's already surpassed his record with 24 goals and still has several games left to improve his tally. And, if that weren't enough, Steijn himself claims the former Ajax player is his idol.

" Litmanen has been a role model for me since I was very young . My father and Rodger Linse, my agent, always told me to look up to him. I watched a lot of videos of him online, even entire matches to see how he handled the number ten role. As players, we are quite similar , although I am not as good as Litmanen," he told De Telegraaf . A new star has arrived in football. Don't forget his name . He could be a star in just a few years.