Who is Bart Ramselaar, the former Dutch international signed by Singapore’s Lion City Sailors?

SINGAPORE: The Lion City Sailors (LCS) on Monday (Feb 26) announced the signing of Dutch midfielder Bart Ramselaar ahead of the 2024-25 Singapore Premier League (SPL) season.

Ramselaar joined the club from the Dutch Eredivisie side FC Utrecht for a reported fee of €1.5 million (S$2.2 million), with his contract to run until the end of the 2025-26 campaign.

Here is what you need to know about the Sailors’ latest recruit and what his signing could mean for the club and the SPL as a whole.

In a media release announcing his signing, the club called 27-year-old Ramselaar a “technically supreme midfield playmaker”.

He will “provide the attacking zest to complement the defensive solidarity brought to the side by Toni Datkovic, the club’s first signing of the off-season”, the Sailors said.

“Bart promises to bring a new dimension to the team’s attacking third as he looks to form a dynamic partnership with fellow PSV Eindhoven alumni Maxime Lestienne,” the club added.

Sailors head coach Aleksandar Rankovic, a former assistant coach at Utrecht, worked with Ramselaar during the 2022-23 Eredivisie season. He said that the footballer’s “speed and intelligent link-up play in the final third” make him a “fantastic addition” to the Sailors’ squad.

“I’m already looking forward to seeing how he can complement the likes of Maxime Lestienne, Shawal Anuar and Richairo Zivkovic to give us an even better attacking threat,” he said in a statement.

In an article on the Sailors’ website, the club described Ramselaar as a player who “prides himself on being a consummate professional” and “comes across as a genuine character who has the absolute respect for his new club and league he will play in”.

“I know there are high standards set at the Lion City