The winger had never been to the U.S. before signing with the Lions in February. He’d never even played outside of his home country of the Netherlands before, spending six seasons working his way up to the top flight.
“I like to have an adventure,” van der Water said. “I was a little bit done with Holland, with the football. And for me, I was looking for a new step.”
While most professionals spend their youth training for club academy teams, the winger spent the first 11 years of his development playing for SDO Bossum, the amateur club close to his hometown of Blaricum.