Town goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen says his move to Portman Road was an opportunity he wanted to take with both hands following his arrival from Royale Union Saint-Gilloise last month.

After winning the Belgian Cup in Brussels last season, alongside featuring eight times in the UEFA Champions League, Scherpen signed for the Blues on a four-year contract for an initial fee of around £8.5 million.

The Dutchman made his Premier League debut in the 2-1 victory over Sunderland last weekend, four and a half years after his last involvement in a matchday squad at the level with Brighton and Hove Albion.

Scherpen says that long-awaited moment to play in the top flight was one of the biggest reasons why he felt this summer was the time to make the move to Suffolk.

“Playing in the Premier League is a dream for all the young kids around,” he said. “If you are able to get that opportunity, there are few who say no to this. I’m really happy to make that opportunity and to take it with both hands.

“I was always looking to the Prem. When you play on the PlayStation, you always took teams from the Premier League because they were always the best, except for Real Madrid and Barcelona maybe.

“Every football fan is directly saying the Premier League is the highest level to get, especially with the atmosphere in England about football. It’s great to be here.”

Following a youth career spent with FC Emmen and European giants Ajax, Scherpen first moved to England with Brighton in 2021 but spent the majority of the next four years out on loan in both his native Netherlands and Austria.

His only appearance for the Sussex side came in an FA Cup tie with West Bromwich Albion, and he eventually moved to Belgium last summer when Union SG, Brighton’s sister club, came calling.

When departing English football a year ago, Scherpen insists he was not instinctively plotting his route back to ensure he returned to the Premier League one day.

The 26-year-old said: “It was not massively something I really wanted to get off my list, actually. But, of course, when the opportunity is there, you have to take it with both hands.

“I’ve been in a few countries now and I had a very good time at Brighton actually. When the opportunity is there, you want to take it with both hands, but it was not something I was really keen on wanting to get back to the Premier League because I didn’t succeed at Brighton. When I have the opportunity, I'm happy with that.

“When I was at Brighton, I wasn’t on the level I am now. It was a real project to develop and get used to the highest level of football. I came from Ajax to Brighton, and it was a step up. In the Premier League, it’s even more about details and going faster. It was a big project for me.

“I don’t want to say I didn’t get a chance there because I don’t think I was in the right place at the right time. After that, I had a lot of experience with my loans, playing games at European level, Europa League and Champions League.

“I played for top teams in that competition where I played in Austria and Belgium, fighting for titles. It was a great experience for me and it developed my game a lot. That’s why I'm really happy now to be back in England able to show what I can do.

“I think there’s still a lot of potential in me, and this is the next step for me to develop.”

In the Champions League last season, Union SG were perceived as one of the underdogs and ultimately missed out on a knockout play-off place on goal difference despite winning three league phase matches.

With the Blues similarly expected to be one of the outsiders in the Premier League this term, Scherpen hopes his experiences in Europe prove useful in his latest domestic season.

He said: “We had to face Bayern Munich, Newcastle United, Inter Milan, so for a top team in Belgium, they are massive games. You need to have a really good day and they have to have a less day to make a chance to win and compete.

“It’s really good to get that experience and to learn from those moments. We will probably have some games this season where we have to struggle, take the pressure and survive.

“That’s something that I’ve learned in the Champions League, playing in a good team in our own country, but when you face Bayern Munich or Inter Milan, it’s something different. Maybe you can say in some games you can compare that.

“It was a good time and a good season, but I feel like over the last couple of years I’ve made progress every season. Every time I’ve made a step up, and this is another step up for me to develop again and see what I have left in my potential.

“There’s still loads of potential and that’s why, with the combination of the Premier League, it’s going to make me an even better goalkeeper.”

Now more than a month on from his arrival in Suffolk, Scherpen says he is settled into the area and fully integrated into the dressing room with his new teammates.

“It’s good actually, the family is over as well for the last two weeks,” he said. “We’re still exploring a little bit of the area. We’re in a good place with a nice house to live and a nice area.

“The other day I was with my wife in the car, and we said we’re going to really have a nice time here. We’re looking forward for the rest of what’s coming. It’s a good place, it reminds us a little bit of home. We’re happy.

“Always a bit hectic when you come to a new country, getting the family over and all settled in. Almost four or five weeks here now so we’re doing well, getting more used to the way of Ipswich Town. We really like it and we’re in a good place.

“I find it quite relaxing coming here. The boys are all really nice and everybody in the club gave me a warm welcome, so that makes life much easier.

“Of course, we have some Dutch language with Azor [Matusiwa] and when Kayne [van Oevelen] was here as well. That’s helpful, of course. In general, the goalie team is always special in the squad so they’re helping me around.

“Dara [O’Shea] as captain is helping me, and Leif [Davis]. It’s really nice from the boys, they all do a great job for every new player to give them a warm welcome. It makes life more easy.”

In particular, midfielder Matusiwa is a face that was somewhat familiar to Scherpen before his summer switch.

Despite their paths not quite crossing while at Ajax, it was in the youth levels of the Dutch national team where the duo were occasionally members of the same camp.

“In the national team, we were together a couple of times so we knew each other as well,” Scherpen said.

“I played a few times against him as well. It makes life easier when you have someone from your own country speaking your own language, welcoming you to the club and helping you around. Also in your private life, they know things for your kids and your family, so it’s really helpful.

“We didn’t speak when we didn’t see each other anymore in the national team. Before I came and before I signed, I asked him a couple of things and only got positives back. That’s what also gave me a good feeling.”

Fellow goalkeeper Christian Walton is another player with a connection, spending a short period of time together fighting for a spot in the first team at Brighton.

Scherpen said: “We had only three or four weeks, then he left on loan to Ipswich. We had a couple of weeks in, so we knew each other from back then. It’s always good to have similar faces when you go somewhere new, so it’s nice.”

Town have a famous history of players from the Netherlands, with legendary figures Arnold Mühren and Frans Thijssen both influential in the club’s UEFA Cup success in 1981.

Martijn Reuser also tasted success at Portman Road in the early 2000s, and Scherpen says he remains in contact with the former midfielder after he was a part of the coaching staff at international level.

“It was only a couple of times, two or three maximum,” he said. “He sent me a couple of texts after the game on Saturday, so when he’s around here we will go for a coffee and speak more about Ipswich. It’s really nice that he left a good mark here, did really well, and to get some feedback from him is great.

“Everybody told me they did really well, so I have to get that reputation as well to leave my mark as a Dutch player here.

“There’s great history behind the club and the Dutch players who played here. It’s something nice, and hopefully I can continue that way and leave that mark.”

Photo: TWTD