Tim Krul has returned to the English Premier League (EPL).
Luton Town officially announced the signing on their official website on Sunday, saying, “Luton manager Rob Edwards has strengthened his goalkeeping options with the arrival of Tim Krul from Norwich City.”
Krul is a veteran goalkeeper born in 1988. Krul grew up in the Dutch league, but has a unique background. He joined Newcastle United as a youth and made his debut for the club. After gaining experience on loan, Krul became a regular for Newcastle in the 2010-11 season.
A starter for Newcastle until the 2014-15 season, Krul became a recognized player in the English Premier League (EPL). A regular at the Dutch age-group level, Krul quickly earned a call-up to the Dutch national team. He wasn’t a starter, though. He was consistently selected as the second or third choice goalkeeper.
However, he fell on hard times at Newcastle in 2015-16 when he started to lose his place in the team. He had spells at Ajax, AZ Alkmaar, and Brighton, all of which failed to establish him as a first-team regular. It wasn’t until he joined Norwich City in the 2018-19 season that Krul found his form again.
After joining Norwich from the second tier, Krul helped the club win promotion to the EPL and return to the EPL in 2019-20. As a starter for Norwich, Krul faced Tottenham in the final league game of the 2021-22 season.
Tottenham had two goals at the time. They wanted to win and make Son Heung-min the EPL’s top scorer. Son was one goal behind Mohamed Salah, so he could have become the EPL’s top scorer with or without a goal in the final game.
On a day when he could have become the first Asian to score in the EPL, Krul made the save of his life. On 토토사이트 multiple occasions, he saved Son Heung-min’s shots, sending Korean soccer fans into a frenzy. Krul’s performance was so good that his Tottenham teammate Dier shouted, “Is Salah doing something to you?” which went viral.
But as it turned out, the South Korean scored back-to-back goals in the 25th and 30th minutes of the second half to make history in the EPL and Asian soccer. Krul was utilized as a rotation member at Norwich after the 2021-22 season. Looking for a new challenge, he headed to promoted Luton Town.
Krul said: “I’m delighted to be joining a team that has had an incredible journey over the last nine years. EPL teams have a lot of competition. It will be no different here,” Krul said, adding that he is determined to compete for a starting spot.