Santiago Giménez returned to action with Feyenoord after playing in the international break with Mexico, and the Mexican sensation wasted no time in once again doing what he does best — scoring goals. Three of them, to be exact.
Santi Giménez hat-trick vs Excelsior; reaches 16 Eredivisie goals
Santi is back to scoring ways in the Netherlands.
Santiago Giménez had himself one of his best games of the season this Saturday when Feyenoord traveled to the other side of the city to face off against Excelsior in the the Rotterdam derby.
At just the fifth minute of the game, a deflected cross into the box, found by Giménez at the edge of the goal line, turned out enough for the 22-year-old to break his five-match scoreless streak in the Netherlands.
¡SANTIAGO GIMÉNEZ VUELVE A LA SENDA DEL GOL!
EL BEBOTE PONE RÁPIDAMENTE EN VENTAJA AL FEYENOORDROMPER LA MALARIA DE 5 PARTIDOS SIN ANOTAR CON EL FEYENOORD pic.twitter.com/fpqSV2KekW
— Futbol Picante (@futpicante) November 25, 2023
Easy peasy for the Mexican.
In the second half, and after Excelsior got themselves on the scoresheet to tie the game, some beautiful movement from Santi in the box, followed by a wonderful weak-footed strike, gave Feyenoord the lead in the game once again.
¡DOBLETE DE SANTI!
¡DOBLETE DE SANTI!Giménez le devuelve la ventaja al Feyenoord con su cuarto doblete de la temporada. pic.twitter.com/3GhyoQjRSo— Futbol Picante (@futpicante) November 25, 2023
This came shortly after Giménez missed one of the easiest goals of the career, turning into perhaps one of the worst fails of the season in the Eredivisie.
Santiago Giménez mist voor open doel...#excfey
— ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) November 25, 2023
He’s human after all.
20 minutes later and with a determined Excelsior keen on rescuing a point at home, El Bebote received the ball at the edge of the 18 and struck the ball (with a deflection) into the keeper’s net to seal his second hat-trick of the season.
¡HAT-TRICK DE SANTI GIMÉNEZ!
NO PARA DE HACER GOLES EL BEBOTE Y YA LLEGÓ A 16 GOLES EN LA EREDIVISIE ⚽ pic.twitter.com/upDizgw8uF— Futbol Picante (@futpicante) November 25, 2023
That’s 16 goals for the Mexican in the current Eredivisie season, turning him into the league’s top goalscorer and player with most goal contributions (19).
When will Santi Giménez become Mexico's undisputed number nine?
Soon, we hope.
Juxtaposed with the fantastic start of his career in the Netherlands with Feyenoord, Santi Giménez's goalscoring start with Mexico has been the complete opposite.
The 22-year-old has struggled to find his pace with El Tri, lacking the confidence and striking ability that we see him exhibit week-in and week-out in the Eredivisie.
However, after a solid performance in Mexico's comeback win against Honduras last Tuesday (giving an assist, scoring the first penalty in the penalty-shootout and showing up when El Tri needed him the most), plus showing no sign of slowing down with Feyenoord in the Eredivisie, Santi Giménez's career with El Tri is starting to see the light.
Giménez's next international fixture with Mexico will be in March when they face off against Panama in the Concacaf Nations League semi-final. We know what happened last time he faced the Canaleros.
