High €60 million tag keeps Kees Smit in AZ camp

Kees Smit, the twenty‑year‑old midfielder of AZ, says a move to another Eredivisie club is unlikely after the Dutch side placed a €60 million price tag on him.

Price and interest block a transfer

AZ’s high asking price, which the club set this summer, has deterred potential suitors despite Smit being linked to several European powerhouses. The Alkmaar outfit even involved super‑agent Jorge Mendes to negotiate the best possible deal.

Smit’s form dipped slightly over the season, a dip he partly attributes to injuries and the constant rumours surrounding his name.

Smit’s view on a domestic step up

"Maybe the transfer window this summer had something to do with it," Smit told, adding that the possibility of leaving AZ had crossed his mind.

He reads all media coverage, both positive and negative, but now avoids the press after the frenzy. "I read everything at first – the good and the bad – and then I stopped," he explained.

The Dutch under‑21 international is comfortable staying another season at AZ, saying, "This summer nothing concrete came for me" and that a move like Sven Mijnans’s switch to PSV does not immediately appeal to him.

Smit also notes that AZ no longer lags far behind PSV, Ajax or Feyenoord, reducing the perceived step up. Yet he acknowledges that clubs playing in the Champions League, such as PSV and Feyenoord, represent a higher level and that Sven’s move was logical, even if he is unsure whether the same would suit him.