Santi Gimenez came on in the 79th minute of Feyenoord’s game in the Europa League. This despite being the team’s top goalscorer in the competition. Santi could do nothing to stop his team’s debacle in their game against Danish side FC Midtjylland. Feyenoord found themselves ahead 2-0 at half-time with the team clearly dominating time of possession, without necessarily creating a ton of goal scoring chances. There were a couple of signs though that Feyenoord weren’t going to be able to hang on in that first half. Even up 2-0 plenty of players got into senseless scuffles with FC Midtjylland players that led to needless yellow cards.
By the time Santi saw the field the score was 2-1. He had a chance to put the ball in the back of a net in an awkward play in the box. He got the ball almost at the penalty spot, but wasn’t able to take a shot on goal after being stopped by some rough defense, and potentially a hand ball. One of the FC Midtjylland defenders literally dove onto the ball, and actually fell on Santi Gimenez’s leg. Ultimately neither the ref nor VAR thought anything of it. Despite the number of goals that he’s been able to convert with a limited amount of minutes on the pitch Santi hasn’t been afforded more playing time. This is true for him at Feyenoord, and the Mexican National Team. Should there be concern for Santi’s position at Feyenoord?
The Process Just Hasn’t Been As Fast As Santi Supporters Would’ve Liked
At this point it’s clear that Arne Slot has decided to bring Santi Gimenez along a lot slower than maybe the Mexican fans would’ve hoped. Another issue for Santi is that Danilo has been playing rather well throughout the season. It’s not like at this point not putting Santi in more minutes is holding the team back all that much. Danilo was the starter at that number 9 spot coming into the season, and it’s pretty clear that he’s done enough to be able to keep his starting role.
What’s potentially frustrating about the situation with Santi Gimenez is that he’s done his part to be able to earn more minutes. At least in some of his early appearances with the squad. He was able to score multiple goals in very few minutes played, and as of late with the same low number of minutes on average per game he’s finding things a bit more difficult. Patience is a key virtue here both for fans, and Santi himself. Maybe as we’ve previously argued it could be in Gimenez’s best interest to look for a club where he’ll have a more prominent role after the World Cup.
The Lack of Minutes With Mexico’s National Team Is Perhaps More Concerning
Speaking of the World Cup, the last Mexico matches during the international break were a clear indicator of where Santi stands on the National Team depth chart. His position is a cause for concern for his fans for sure. He’s clearly the 4th option for Martino being leapfrogged by Henry Martin who wasn’t necessarily a favorite of Martino’s during the World Cup qualifiers.
If both Funes Mori, and Raul Jimenez are able to make it back in time for the World Cup it’s going to be Santi who will be watching the tournament from home. That could be a big blow to his career options for sure. Even though he’s seemingly done enough to earn more minutes on both squads he could be out of luck and left with no other option, but to tough it out and hope for more minutes at Feyenoord. Since he won’t be able to showcase his talents at the World Cup. It seems like he just keeps getting the short end of the stick!
