Dries Mertens - Belgian football player
Dries Mertens is a Belgian professional football player. He currently plays for the Super Lig club Galatasaray and the Belgium national team. His playing position is a striker or winger.
Dries Mertens has previously played for Gent, Eendracht Aalst (loan), AGOVV, Utrecht, PSV Eindhoven, and Napoli. At Napoli, he made 397 appearances for the club, scoring 148 goals and providing 90 assists in all competitions. He helped Napoli to win two Coppa Italia and one Supercoppa Italiana. In 2020, he scored his 122nd goal for the club, surpassing Marek Hamšík as Napoli's all-time top goalscorer. Currently, he is playing for Galatasaray.
On the international level, Dries Mertens has represented Belgium at various age levels. He has represented Belgium at U17 and the senior level. He made his senior international team debut for Belgium on 9 February 2011. He was part of Belgium’s squad that played at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016, the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and UEFA Euro 2020, helping them to a third-place finish at the 2018 tournament. In 2016, he was named Belgian Footballer of the Year. Since his debut, he has obtained over 100 caps and scored over 20 goals for Belgium.
Early Life and Family
Dries Mertens was born on 6 May 1987. His birthplace is Leuven, Belgium. He was born to his father, Herman Mertens, and to his mother, Marijke Mertens. He grew up having so much respect for his parents, who taught him life’s needed moral and ethical values. He grew up alongside his brother named Jeroen Mertens. He holds Belgian nationality and belongs to the white ethnicity. Likewise, as per his birthdate, his zodiac sign is Taurus. Information regarding his education is currently unavailable.
Dries Mertens Football Career
Dries Mertens started playing football for the youth team of Stade Leuven in 1996 and played until 1998.
In 1998, Dries Mertens joined the youth team of Anderlecht and spent five years in the youth setup before being released in 2003, with coaches finding him to be too short and physically incapable of competing at a professional level.
Gent
- Following his release from Anderlecht, in 2003, Dries Mertens then joined the youth team of Gent and began his career at the club.
Endracht Aalst (loan)
- Following two seasons in Gent's youth academy, on 1 July 2005, Dries Mertens was loaned to Eendracht Aalst for the 2005-06 season where he made 14 appearances for the club, scoring 4 goals in all the competitions as he was named Player of the Year that season.
AGOVV Apeldoorn
- Following the end of the 2005-06 season, on 1 July 2006, Dries Mertens was loaned to the Dutch club, AGOVV Apeldoorn for the 2006-07 season where he made 35 appearances for the club, scoring 2 goals in all the competitions.
- Following his impressive performances on loan, on 1 July 2007, AGOVV Apeldoorn permanently signed him for €46,000. During his 2007-08 season, Dries Mertens made 40 appearances for the club, scoring 16 goals and providing 6 assists in all the competitions.
- During his 2008-09 season, Dries Mertens was made the club's new captain that season. During that season, he made 37 appearances for the club, scoring 14 goals and providing 8 assists in all the competitions as he was awarded the Golden Bull award for the most talented player in the Eerste Divisie in 2008.
- Dries Mertens spent three years at AGOVV. He scored 31 goals in 110 appearances in all competitions for the club.
Utrecht
- In March 2009, Dries Mertens officially signed for Utrecht for a €600,000 transfer fee. He made his debut for the club on 1 August 2009 in a 1-0 win against KC Waalwijk. On 16 August 2009, he scored his first goal for the club, scoring twice in a 2-2 draw against VVV-Venlo. In his first season, he made 39 appearances for the club, scoring 7 goals and providing 10 assists in all the competitions as he was awarded the Di Tommaso Trophy for Utrecht's Player of the Season. Additionally, he also finished runner-up to Ajax's Luis Suarez for the Dutch Footballer of the Year award.
- During his 2010-11 season, Dries Mertens made 47 appearances for the club, scoring 14 goals and providing 24 assists in all the competitions.
PSV Eindhoven
- In June 2011, Utrecht transferred Dries Mertens and Kevin Strootman to PSV Eindhoven for a combined fee of €13 million. He scored on his debut for the club on 7 August 2011 in a 3-1 loss against AZ Alkmaar.
- Towards the back end of the 2011-12 season fixture against Heracles, Dries Mertens collided with opponent's goalkeeper Remko Pasveer and lost a number of teeth. One of his teeth was found lodged in Pasveer's head three weeks later.
- Dries Mertens was part of the PSV team that won the 2011-12 KNVB Cup and the 2012 Johan Cruyff Shield.
- The following season, Dries Mertens played a key role for PSV that finished runner-up to Ajax in the 2012-13 Eredivisie.
- During his two seasons at PSV, Dries Mertens made 88 appearances for the club, scoring 45 goals and providing 43 assists in all the competitions.
Napoli
- In June 2013, Dries Mertens signed with Italian club Napoli for a reported fee of €9.5 million. Thus, he became the first signing of Napoli's new manager, Rafael Benitez.
- Dries Mertens made his Serie A debut for the club on 25 August 2013 in a 3-0 win over Bologna.
- On 30 November 2013, Dries Mertens scored his first goal for the club when he netted the winner in a 2-1 away victory over Fiorentina.
- Dries Mertens was part of the Napoli team that won the 2013-14 Coppa Italia defeating Fiorentina 3-1. He came on in as a substitute and scored in the final.
- Dries Mertens was also part of the Mertens team that won the 2014 Supercoppa Italiana. Napoli defeated Juventus in the penalty shoot-out.
- On 18 December 2016, Dries Mertens scored four goals in a 5-3 win over Torino. Thus, while scoring four goals, he recorded the fourth fastest hat-trick in Serie A history.
- On 4 February 2017, Dries Mertens and Hamšík both scored a hat-trick in a 7-1 away win over Bologna. This was Napoli scoring 7 goals in a single game for the first time in the club's history.
- During his 2016-17 season, Dries Mertens finished the season as the league's second-top goalscorer behind Edin Dzeko.
- On 28 November 2018, Dries Mertens scored his 100th goal for Napoli when he netted twice in a 3-1 UEFA Champions League win over Red Star Belgrade.
- On 14 April 2019, Dries Mertens made his 200th Serie A appearance for the club in a 3-1 win over Chievo, marking the occasion with an assist for Kalidou Koulibaly's opening goal.
- In 2020, he scored his 122nd goal for the club, surpassing Marek Hamšík as Napoli's all-time top goalscorer.
- On 21 March 2021, Dries Mertens scored his 99th and 100th Serie A goals for Napoli in a 2-0 win against Roma.
- On 21 November 202, Dries Mertens scored his 103rd Serie A goal for Napoli in a 3-2 defeat to Inter, becoming the club's top scorer of all time in Serie A.
- During his nine seasons at Napoli, Dries Mertens made 397 appearances for the club, scoring 148 goals and providing 90 assists in all the competitions. During that season, he also helped Napoli to win two Coppa Italia and one Supercoppa Italiana.
Galatasaray
- On 8 August 2022, Dries Mertens joined the Turkish club Galatasaray on a free transfer. He made his debut for the club on 13 August 2022 in a 1-0 loss against Giresunspor.
- On 23 October 2022, Dries Mertens scored his first goal for the club in a 2-2 draw against Alanyaspor.
International Career
- Dries Mertens has represented Belgium at various age levels.
- Dries Mertens has represented Belgium at U17 and the senior level.
- On 1 October 2010, Dries Mertens received his first senior call-up for Belgium at the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying matches against Kazakhstan and Austria. Though he never featured in either match.
- Dries Mertens made his senior international team debut for Belgium on 9 February 2011 in a 1-1 friendly draw against Finland.
- On 15 August 2012, Dries Mertens scored his first senior international goal for Belgium in a 4-2 friendly win against the Netherlands.
- Dries Mertens was part of Belgium’s squad that played at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016, the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and UEFA Euro 2020, helping them to a third-place finish at the 2018 tournament.
- In 2016, Dries Mertens was named Belgian Footballer of the Year.
- On 17 June 2021, Dries Mertens played his 100th match for Belgium in a 2–1 win over Denmark during the UEFA Euro 2020.
- In November 2022, Dries Mertens was named to the Belgium squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
- Since his debut, Dries Mertens has obtained over 100 caps and scored over 20 goals for Belgium.
Dries Mertens Wife
Looking at his personal life, Dries Mertens is a married man. He has been married to Katrin Kerkhofs for five years now. The couple has been dating for several years before taking this big step. They have been together since 2012. The couple tied the knot on 27 June 2015 in a beautiful wedding ceremony attended by friends and families, in other words, only the closest people to the couple. The couple is blessed with their first son on 26 March 2022. As hinted, he has named his child Ciro, the very Neapolitan nickname that he was given by fans and teammates. At present, they are living their life happily together.
Dries Mertens Net Worth 2022
Dries Mertens is a very talented football player and with his continuous hard work and dedication, he has accumulated a huge amount of money from his football career which is his major source of wealth. His income comes from contracts, salaries, bonuses, and endorsements. In July 2007, AGOVV Apeldoorn permanently signed him for €46,000. In March 2009, he officially signed for Utrecht for a €600,000 transfer fee. In June 2011, Utrecht transferred Dries Mertens and Kevin Strootman to PSV Eindhoven for a combined fee of €13 million. In June 2013, Dries Mertens signed with Italian club Napoli for a reported fee of €9.5 million. As of 2022, his net worth is believed to be €18 million and he received £5.7 million as a yearly salary from his current club. Additionally, he has a house in Naples, Italy where he stays with his wife and kid. He also has premium luxury cars like Ford Fairlane, Opel Astra, BMW, Range Rover, and Audi. In addition, his market value is around €3.40 million.
Dries Mertens Body Measurements
Dries Mertens stands at the height of 1.69m i.e. 5 feet and 7 inches tall. He has a body weight of 61kg. He has an athletic body build. His eye color is dark brown and his hair color is black. His chest size is 42 inches, his arms size is 14 inches and his waist size is 30 inches. In addition, his sexual orientation is straight. He frequently does exercise to maintain his body. Overall, he has got a healthy and balanced body.
Dries Mertens’s Transfer History
- Dries Mertens started playing football for the youth team of Stade Leuven in 1996 and played until 1998.
- In 1998, Dries Mertens joined the youth team of Anderlecht and spent five years in the youth setup before being released in 2003, with coaches finding him to be too short and physically incapable of competing at a professional level.
- Following his release from Anderlecht, in 2003, Dries Mertens then joined the youth team of Gent and began his career at the club.
- In July 2006, Dries Mertens was loaned to the Dutch club, AGOVV Apeldoorn for the 2006-07 season.
- Following his impressive performances on loan, in July 2007, AGOVV Apeldoorn permanently signed him for €46,000.
- In March 2009, Dries Mertens officially signed for Utrecht for a €600,000 transfer fee.
- In June 2011, Utrecht transferred Dries Mertens and Kevin Strootman to PSV Eindhoven for a combined fee of €13 million.
- In June 2013, Dries Mertens signed with Italian club Napoli for a reported fee of €9.5 million.
- In August 2022, Dries Mertens joined the Turkish club Galatasaray on a free transfer.
Awards and Achievements
Honors
- Won the 2011-12 KNVB Cup with PSV.
- Won the 2012 Johan Cruyff Shield with PSV.
- Won the 2013-14, 2019-20 Coppa Italia with Napoli.
- Won the 2014 Supercoppa Italiana with Napoli.
Individual
- Won the 2006 Belgian Third Division Player of the Season.
- Won the 2009 Eerste Divisie Golden Ball.
- Won the 2010 Di Tommaso Trophy.
- Won the 2016 Belgian Footballer of the Year.
- Ballon d'Or nomination: 2017
- Serie A Team of the Year: 2016-17
