PSV has transferred international Veerle Buurman to Chelsea FC for a record fee. The talent will remain with PSV Women on a rental basis in 2024-2025 before leaving for the top English club. The 18-year-old defender is currently active at the World Under 20 Championship in Colombia.
With her transfer to Chelsea FC, the milestones continue to pile up for the young central defender. Veerle makes the switch from SC Bemmel to PSV in the summer of 2023, after an intensive tailoring program in which she has been training with them for quite some time, where she joins the U21 team. After only a few months with Young PSV Women she is already transferred to the A-selection and signs her first professional contract. Veerle quickly became a fixed value for Roeland ten Berge's team, resulting in 14 appearances. This also caught the eye of national coach Andries Jonker. He selected her in the summer for the Dutch National Women's Team.
Step by step
"Chelsea had shown interest before, but I wanted to take it step by step and sign with PSV first. That was the right choice. I'm having a great time at PSV and have been able to take important steps. My development has been very fast," says Veerle, who recently received another offer from London. "This time I took the call. They offered me a wonderful development path, which got me thinking. Partly because of my experience with the Orange Lionesses, I see this as a great opportunity."
Veerle is proud of her move and at the same time happy to stay with PSV for another season. "I'll still be rented out the first year, so I don't have to let go of my team right away, and I don't want to. This year at PSV, the focus is on getting more minutes played, getting prizes and qualifying for the Champions League. That is my main goal. In addition, it is important for me to continue to develop to become an even better and more complete defender. Chelsea offers me the right opportunities and possibilities for this. It is a fantastic club in women's football, the champion of England. It feels like the right step to further develop into a player who can compete with the absolute top."
Proud
Technical Manager Maud Roetgering of PSV Women is extremely proud of Veerle and happy that she will still be playing for PSV on a rental basis in 2024-2025. "She is incredibly talented and for a young player is also already extremely consistent and mature in her game. We were therefore not surprised when with Chelsea an absolute top club knocked on the door. As PSV we are extremely proud of her, because it is very special that such a young player makes such a big step. At the same time, all parties also recognized that Veerle can still learn a lot here. It is now up to her to leave for England in the summer with as much luggage as possible."