Youth player Robbin Weijenberg has signed his first professional contract with Go Ahead Eagles. The 19-year-old Weijenberg put his signature under a contract until mid-2025 (with an additional option year) in De Adelaarshorst.

Weijenberg is currently participating in the preparation with the first selection and will also remain part of the first team this season. In 2017, Weijenberg made the switch from FC Zutphen to the youth academy of Go Ahead Eagles. After going through the entire Football Academy, he played his matches last season in Under-21 and was already able to regularly join the first selection.

Tight-knit player group

“Last season was very beautiful, but sometimes also tough for me as a player,” Weijenberg says. “In the 2022/2023 season, I was able to sit on the bench for several matches with the first selection, and last season I got to train during the preparation. From the moment you taste the highest level, you actually only want to play there. You learn the most there and progress very quickly. In that respect, you also logically notice that it is easier to play your matches in youth football. This obviously doesn’t mean that I could take it easy, because even in Under-21, I had to get everything out of myself. I trained as hard as possible, ran extra meters, and tried to prove myself. Everything to make the step up as small as possible when I would be able to make the transition to the first selection, which is now the case.”

In Under-21, Robbin Weijenberg was part of a tight-knit player group last season. “We all worked very hard, and our goal was simple: to maintain our position in Division 1. That was, however, easier said than done, as quite a few boys left during the winter break, leaving us with a very small selection. Strangely enough, we did not really notice this within the group itself. You are always going to miss people and are good friends with a number of guys, but we supported each other well, so it had no effect on our game. The only thing that was really noticeable was that there were fewer guys at training, allowing more room for youth players from other teams to join us in training. That was good for the progression of younger youth players. Ultimately, we managed to maintain our position at the highest level of football.

Hoping for a debut

The goals of Weijenberg and his teammates in Under-21 were thus achieved. Additionally, he, as a player and supporter, also experienced the unprecedented season of the first team of Go Ahead Eagles. “It was wonderful to follow the first team because I could see from the inside what was happening. As a supporter, I was already on the stands or at home screaming as loud as I could and cheering for every victory. But behind the scenes, I could also see how it was among the players. The moment the play-offs for European football were secured, I was already happy, but you could feel from everything and everyone within the player group that they wanted more. No one was content with just a spot in the play-offs. The player group and staff had confidence in each other and that was also truly expressed. To have been a small part of that as a player from Under-21 was incredibly special.”

Well supported

“I am really lucky with the player group of the first team of Go Ahead Eagles,” Weijenberg continues. “I feel that everyone is rooting for me and supports me where needed. Many players welcome me at training and are happy for me that I am now officially part of the selection. When you are well supported, it makes playing football a lot easier, and that is also necessary given the quality difference you experience. Speed of action, precision, thinking ability; everything happens so much faster. My personal level also increases because of this, and I hope that by working hard, I can achieve my goals and dreams.”

Weijenberg speaks passionately about his dreams at Go Ahead Eagles and concludes in a way that is almost characteristic of the young midfielder. “To be part of the player group of the first selection is already wonderful. I see how the players think and how they motivate each other, including the staff. You automatically get involved and start believing in it. The tactics and agreements that have been made, I also recognized in the matches because I had trained with them. In every match, I paid attention to whether that happened and how the players did it. I then had to see to apply this to my own game in Under-21. I am only 19 years old, but I have already been able to experience all of this. Everything I have learned, I carry with me in my 'backpack' so that I hopefully can eventually show what I can do in a full Adelaarshorst.”

Technical manager Paul Bosvelt: “Robbin is a youth player who has been in the Football Academy from the beginning. In the last few seasons, he has already been part of the selection in the preparation, during which he has earned a permanent place under René Hake in the last half season. His drive and the fact that he is quite all-round characterize him as a midfielder.”