Theo Janssen: ‘He is so good. He will leave PSV for a lot of money after this season’

Theo Janssen told Ziggo Sport he thoroughly enjoyed watching Kodai Sano on Wednesday evening. PSV lost 1-2 to Club Brugge, but the goalscorer made a tremendous impression.

"I thought Sano played really well throughout," Janssen begins. "He has a lot of bite about him and wins a lot of second balls. He is really eager to get forward, but he also does his job for the team defensively."

"He has adapted to PSV's level effortlessly, but I'll tell you something else," Janssen says. "He is going to surpass that level. He is so good. He is so good. He is really going to take another step forward."

Janssen believes Sano could reach the very top sooner than many expect. "If he keeps playing the way he is now, it wouldn't surprise me if he has moved on again after this season. For a lot of money."

"You can see it. It's great to have a midfielder who can play football so well. But it's also great when you win a lot of second balls and then do good things with them. He always does that."

Sano's passion catches Janssen's eye, too. "He looks to get forward and is sharp in his challenges. And he does it with total commitment. At one point, you saw him commit a minor foul near the touchline, and he went absolutely mad. Angry with everyone and everything."

"He has vision, he gets in behind, he goes past his man… And then he still has the awareness to lay the ball off at the right moment. This lad has so much quality."