From amateur to Champions League final: The stunning rise of Inter's Denzel Dumfries

BARENDRECHT, Netherlands -- It's a lukewarm Saturday successful May, the time earlier the last circular of the Eredivisie, and the 7 pitches astatine VV Smitshoek, southbound of Rotterdam, are packed. Children of each ages are playing soccer, astatine varying levels of competitiveness.

Indoors, 1 of their younker teams is celebrating winning their league: Tradition states they're fixed a immense platter of fries, followed by taking a photograph with a trophy. They person 1,275 members, and teams see players ranging from 6 to 65 years old, the older procreation playing walking shot connected an country that 80 years agone was farmland.

A 10-minute thrust distant is BVV Barendrecht. Their 9 pitches are besides packed; the clubhouse is besides heaving with immoderate of their 2,300 members. This is conscionable a tiny snapshot of the Netherlands' amateur shot scene, and it's present successful the suburbs of Rotterdam wherever Inter Milan and Netherlands close backmost Denzel Dumfries mastered his craft.

On Saturday, Dumfries volition commencement for Inter Milan successful the Champions League final, and past connected to World Cup qualifiers successful June. But portion his Dutch teammates came done the academy pathways from a young age, shaped by the finest brains successful the sport, a decennary agone Dumfries was conscionable 1 of the children enjoying Saturday greeting shot successful this portion of the satellite with his pals, having slipped done the academy net.

He joined Smitshoek astatine property 7 and played determination until helium was 16, telling his teammates from a young property that helium would 1 time play for the Netherlands. They laughed astatine him, but helium ne'er doubted himself. "He was a kid that truly stands down his imagination and is consenting to bash thing for it," Peter van der Pennen, his archetypal manager astatine Smitshoek, tells ESPN.

It's done graft connected the amateur shot country and immense self-belief that helium has progressed to being 1 of the world's champion fullbacks. But it started successful this country of the Netherlands, connected aged farmland, conscionable southbound of Rotterdam.

On the partition of Barendrecht's clubhouse are shirts from graduates Dumfries, Anwar El Ghazi and Go Ahead Eagles guardant Finn Stokkers. Smitshoek, who besides number ex-Ipswich fullback Fabian Wilnis and PEC Zwolle's Dylan Vente among their alumni, person 2 of Dumfries' shirts successful their committee room, 1 from Inter Milan and different from PSV. In 2025 terms, helium is simply a unicorn. "We person often looked astatine him, debated him, but we did not deliberation helium was bully enough," Feyenoord younker scout Maup Martens told de Volkskrant successful 2018. "There were excessively galore doubts astir his footballing qualities. Someone tin beryllium physically precise beardown astatine 15, but that vantage often disappears erstwhile helium is 18."

"That astir apt has to bash with his method qualities and his tallness astatine that moment," Van der Pennen says, responding to those suggestions. "But helium had different qualities they ignored. He was accelerated and impressive. Every hostile was acrophobic of him."

Dumfries, named aft Hollywood superstar Denzel Washington, played for Smitshoek from 2002 to 2013 (bar 2 years erstwhile helium played for adjacent broadside Spartaan'20, lone to instrumentality to Smitshoek). He past went to Barendrecht from 2013 to 2014.

Dumfries' chamber was successful the attic of his parents' house, and connected the slanted walls, helium utilized to gully his ain expected XI for the weekend's match. "When we were grooming a circumstantial accomplishment and it didn't rather work, helium ever wanted to bash it again until it worked," Van der Pennen says. "He was besides ne'er satisfied erstwhile helium was substituted; helium ever thought wrong himself helium was amended than whoever was replacing him. But with a sulky look helium reluctantly came to the side."

Van der Pennen remembers a lucifer wherever they already had the title tied up, and were winning, but inactive Dumfries chased a mislaid pass. "He failed to support the shot in, and fell to his knees, slamming the grass, adjacent though the lucifer was already easy won," Van der Pennen says.

"He was ne'er a feline similar Messi, but helium was ever truthful definite of his ain quality and assured he'd get to the top," Lesley Esajas, his manager astatine Barendrecht, tells ESPN. "He was overactive, helium ne'er stopped running. If helium took a corner, he'd past effort to get into the container himself."

Dumfries utilized to regularly sojourn the Esajas household for meal during the week, but Esajas remembers 1 time astatine astir 17 years aged erstwhile helium turned down fries and mayonnaise -- the Wednesday staple -- arsenic helium had started taking nutrition seriously. "He said, 'No, no, I request vegetables.'" His teammates astatine the clip spoke of however Dumfries would skip play parties, focusing connected his fittingness instead.

Jordi Dekker, who coaches the Smitshoek under-14s, played alongside Dumfries from property 10 to 14. The squad played an all-out-attack 3-3-4, with Dumfries astatine halfway back.

"There was 1 lucifer wherever we were winning 5-4, past conceded a late, precocious equalizer," Dekker says. "Denzel was furious; helium grabbed the different defender by the scruff of the cervix and crumpled up his shirt." On different occasion, erstwhile helium was 14, Dumfries wore an Ajax kit to a league -- this is Feyenoord country, remember. Dekker adds: "His manager was unhappy and told to cleanable up the grooming field, but Denzel was connected his motorcycle consecutive away, riding home."

In 2014, erstwhile Dumfries was 18, Sparta Rotterdam took a punt connected him. (He besides represented Aruba doubly successful friendlies against Guam.) He played determination successful the reserves -- wherever helium learned from Ajax Champions League victor and Netherlands close backmost Michael Reiziger -- earlier being signed to a elder contract. "He is overmuch stronger than maine and has overmuch much lung capacity. He tin spell far," Reiziger said astatine the time.

Dumfries rapidly received admired glances from elsewhere. "He has a batch of conditions to scope the implicit top," Sparta manager Alex Pastoor said astatine the time. "Just look astatine his physique. If you tin travel connected 80 times per fractional ... those are things that yet marque the biggest clubs successful the satellite autumn for." Heerenveen past signed him successful 2017 for €750,000. A play later, PSV paid €5.5 cardinal for him, which saw some Barendrecht and Smitshoek gain €90,000 (compensation for the enactment enactment successful by amateur clubs for pro players). Smitshoek spent that windfall connected revamping their clubhouse.

Dumfries progressed to go skipper of PSV. "Denzel was not the subordinate with a velvet technique, but helium did person an iron-strong mentality and perseverance," Van der Pennen says. In 2021, Inter Milan picked him up for €14.25 million. He has represented the Netherlands astatine 2 Euros and the 2022 World Cup, won the Scudetto with Inter Milan past twelvemonth and helped them to the Champions League last this term, including scoring doubly successful the semifinal against Barcelona. But helium has done each this contempt the academy system, which guides and molds young players successful a nonrecreational environment. Matthijs de Ligt came done De Toekomst (Ajax's academy), wherever helium was educated and received full-time, adept guidance connected each facet of his improvement arsenic a player. Meanwhile, Dumfries would bid doubly a week aft schoolhouse and play connected Saturday with nary assistance connected nutrition and fitness, conscionable the cognition of unpaid coaches helping him.

Dumfries himself said successful a 2019 interview with Voetbal International: "The radical who did not seen it successful maine were constricted successful their vision. They lone looked astatine maine astatine the time, but they should person looked further. They should person thought, 'How tin helium develop?' I deliberation everyone should person that outlook, and not bounds yourselves to thing truthful small."

Dumfries inactive holds his roots close. His parents unrecorded adjacent to Smitshoek. He works with Lesley Esajas' brother, Errol, connected question grooming -- Errol visiting him successful Milan fortnightly. Dumfries invited them to Feyenoord-Inter Milan arsenic his guests, and to the instrumentality limb successful Milan. "He's ever moving connected himself," Esajas says. "That's wherefore helium made it."

The time aft helium made his Netherlands debut against Germany successful October 2018, helium was opening transportation No. 9 astatine Barendrecht. After their under-16 broadside won the league this year, helium sent a video message, wishing them good successful their careers. "I inactive get kippenvel [goose bumps] watching him play," Esajas says. "He did everything to beryllium a star."

At the extremity of this season, 10 players betwixt the ages of 9 and 17 volition determination from Barendrecht into pro clubs, with Sparta Rotterdam taking three. There are usually 5 scouts contiguous astatine some Smitshoek and Barendrecht connected Saturday mornings. They're watching players arsenic young arsenic 6, looking to prize them distant from their friends and amateur teams to 1 of the pro Eredivisie sides. Both clubs person ties with Feyenoord, but that doesn't halt Sparta Rotterdam, Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and countless others from dispatching eyes and ears to find the Netherlands' adjacent star.

It's soccer's arms race. Some scouts, according to sources, usage devious ways to circumnavigate the agreed mode of doing things, which says they request to attack the nine archetypal earlier talking to parents to entice their sons and daughters to their attached team's academies. But retired of each these talented youngsters, lone a pinch volition marque it, galore volition beryllium discarded.

"The happening is, with these young players, there's nary earthy progression -- immoderate highest early, immoderate highest late," Leen Vos, Barendrecht's installation manager and interim caput of younker coaching, says. "They request abstraction to grow." Even then, with each intake, scouts volition disregard galore of them successful favour of playmakers. "These guys hide things similar the value of powerfulness and winning mentality," Esajas says. "There are a batch of players retired determination similar Denzel, who conscionable request time, but scouts won't spot that. They conscionable look for players similar Frenkie de Jong. Denzel needed abstraction to bash his ain thing."

Back successful 2022, connected National Football Day successful the Netherlands, the Dutch players wore shirts from their archetypal shot club. Dumfries opted for the orangish of Smitshoek. The club's younker programme is present called "Oranje to Oranje," reflecting Dumfries' travel from Smitshoek to the Netherlands, according to nine typical Marcel van den Eijnden. Over astatine Barendrecht, they inactive usage Dumfries arsenic an illustration to motivate the children who play determination each weekend.

But those who person seen Dumfries' unthinkable precocious emergence from the amateur ranks to the pinnacle of the Champions League don't deliberation we'll ever spot the likes of him again. The unreserved to get talented kids into academies, and what they're looking for, mean Dumfries volition stay an outlier.

"Children don't get the abstraction they request to turn successful football," Vos says. "If they're technically talented, they'll get brought into an academy, past they're successful the system. Any incorrect step, and they're out. If they person the carnal attributes but not yet the skill, they'll beryllium lost. What acceptable Denzel isolated was his self-belief and mindset. It's truthful rare."