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Dries Mertens

Mertens with Belgium at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Personal information

Date of birth

6 May 1987 (age 38)

Place of birth

Leuven, Belgium

Height

1.69 m

Playing position

Forward, winger

Club information

Current club

Galatasaray

Number

Youth career

1996–1998

Stade Leuven

1998–2003

Anderlecht

2003–2005

Gent

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

2005–2007

Gent

(0)

2005–2006

→ Eendracht Aalst (loan)

(4)

2006–2007

→ AGOVV (loan)

(2)

2007–2009

AGOVV

(28)

2009–2011

Utrecht

(17)

2011–2013

PSV Eindhoven

(37)

2013–2022

Napoli

295

(113)

2022–

Galatasaray

(19)

National team^‡

2004

Belgium U17

(0)

2011–2022

Belgium

109

(21)

Honours

Men’s football

Representing Belgium
FIFA World Cup
Third	2018

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:19, 17 January 2025 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 22:09, 1 December 2022 (UTC)

Dries Mertens is a professional footballer from Belgium. He was born on May 6, 1987. He plays as a forward or winger for the Turkish club Galatasaray.

Mertens started playing football in youth teams like Stade Leuven and Anderlecht. He then moved to Dutch clubs like AGOVV Apeldoorn and Utrecht. Later, he joined PSV Eindhoven and won the KNVB Cup and Johan Cruyff Shield.

In 2013, Mertens moved to Napoli in Italy. He played almost 400 games for them. He won the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana. In 2020, he became Napoli's all-time top goalscorer. In 2022, he joined Galatasaray and has won two league titles with them.

Mertens also played for the Belgian national team. He made his debut in 2011 and played over 100 games for his country. He played in three FIFA World Cup tournaments (2014, 2018, 2022) and two UEFA European Championship tournaments (2016, 2020). Belgium finished third at the 2018 World Cup. In 2016, he was named Belgian Footballer of the Year.

Club Career

Starting Out

Dries Mertens began his football journey as a young boy in his hometown of Leuven, Belgium. He first played for a local club called Stade Leuven. Scouts from a bigger club, Anderlecht, noticed his talent and he joined their youth academy in 1998.

After five years at Anderlecht, he left in 2003. The coaches thought he was too short and not strong enough to play professionally. But Mertens didn't give up! He then joined another Belgian club, Gent.

Playing in the Netherlands

After two seasons in Gent's youth team, Mertens was loaned to Eendracht Aalst for the 2005–06 season. He played really well for this third division team and was even named Player of the Year.

Still, Gent's coaches weren't fully convinced because of his small size. So, they loaned him out again, this time to a Dutch club called AGOVV Apeldoorn in 2006.

AGOVV Apeldoorn

Mertens officially joined AGOVV Apeldoorn on July 1, 2006. He quickly became a fan favorite. He scored 2 goals in 35 games during his first season. His good performance made AGOVV decide to sign him permanently.

The next season, Mertens scored 15 goals in 38 games. He was so important that he became the new team captain for the 2008–09 season. He scored 13 more goals that season and won the Golden Bull award for the most talented player in the Eerste Divisie (the second-highest league in the Netherlands).

After three seasons, Mertens left AGOVV. He had played 110 games and scored 31 goals for the club.

Mertens training with Utrecht in 2009

FC Utrecht

In 2009, Mertens joined Utrecht for €600,000. In his first season, he scored six league goals. He was even named runner-up for the Dutch Footballer of the Year award. He also won the Di Tommaso Trophy, which is Utrecht's Player of the Season award.

The next season, he scored 10 goals in 31 league games. He even scored three goals in one game (a hat-trick) against AZ. He also scored three goals in his first time playing in the UEFA Europa League. In total, Mertens scored 14 goals and made 24 assists that season. His great performances caught the eye of bigger clubs. He played 86 games for Utrecht and scored 21 goals.

PSV Eindhoven

In June 2011, Mertens signed with PSV Eindhoven, another big Dutch club. He joined with his teammate Kevin Strootman for a total of €13 million. He scored in his very first game for PSV on August 7, 2011.

Later that month, he scored his first hat-trick for PSV in a big 6–1 win. On September 24, 2011, he scored four goals in one game! This meant he had scored 11 goals in his first 7 games for PSV.

During one game, Mertens lost some teeth after crashing into the opposing goalkeeper. But he still managed to score! It was even reported that the goalkeeper found one of Mertens' teeth in his head three weeks later! Mertens finished that season with 21 goals in 33 league games. He also scored three goals in the KNVB Cup, helping PSV win the final 3–0.

Mertens played for Dutch side PSV Eindhoven between 2011 and 2013.

At the start of the next season, PSV won the Johan Cruyff Shield by beating Ajax 4–2. Mertens scored 14 league goals that season and made 17 assists. After two seasons, Mertens left PSV. He had played 88 games and scored 45 goals.

Moving to Italy: Napoli

On June 16, 2013, Mertens agreed to join Napoli, a club in Italy's top league, Serie A. He was the first player signed by Napoli's new coach, Rafael Benítez. Napoli paid €9.5 million for him.

He played his first Serie A game on August 25, 2013. His first goal for Napoli came on October 30, helping them win 2–1. In January 2014, he scored two goals in one game (a brace) for the first time with Napoli.

On May 3, 2014, Mertens came on as a substitute in the Coppa Italia final. He scored a goal in extra time, helping Napoli win 3–1. He won another trophy on December 22, 2014, when Napoli beat Juventus in a penalty shootout to win the Supercoppa.

Even though he often started games from the bench, he kept scoring goals. He scored 10 goals and made 11 assists in the 2014–15 season. The next season, he scored 11 goals, including two in a big 5–0 win in the Europa League. He also scored a hat-trick in a 6–0 win against Bologna.

Mertens during Napoli's UEFA Champions League game against Red Bull Salzburg in 2019

In the 2016–17 season, Mertens started playing more as a main striker. On December 11, 2016, he scored a hat-trick in a 5–0 win. In the very next game, he scored four goals in a 5–3 win! This was the first time a Napoli player scored four goals in a game since 1977. He also became the first player since 1974 to score hat-tricks in two games in a row. Because of his amazing form, he was named Belgian Footballer of the Year for 2016.

On February 4, 2017, Mertens and his teammate Marek Hamšík both scored hat-tricks in a huge 7–1 win. By the end of the season, Mertens had scored 28 league goals. The next season, he scored 22 goals.

On November 28, 2018, Mertens scored his 100th goal for Napoli in a UEFA Champions League game. On April 14, 2019, he played his 200th Serie A game for the club. On April 28, he scored a goal that made him equal Diego Maradona's record of 81 Serie A goals for Napoli.

In October 2019, he scored two goals in a Champions League game, passing Maradona's total of 115 goals for the club. This made him Napoli's second-highest scorer of all time. On February 25, 2020, he scored against Barcelona in the Champions League, which tied him with Hamšík as Napoli's all-time top goalscorer with 121 goals.

On June 13, he scored a goal that made him Napoli's all-time leading goalscorer with 122 goals, passing Hamšík! A few days later, he signed a new two-year contract. Napoli then won the Coppa Italia final on penalties.

On March 21, 2021, Mertens scored his 99th and 100th Serie A goals for Napoli. Later that year, on November 21, he scored his 103rd Serie A goal for Napoli, becoming the club's top scorer in Serie A history.

Joining Galatasaray

On August 8, 2022, Mertens moved to the Turkish club Galatasaray for free. He helped his new club win the Süper Lig title in the 2022–23 season. This was Galatasaray's 23rd league title.

On May 26, 2024, Galatasaray won the Süper Lig again for the 24th time, setting a record with 102 points. Mertens had a fantastic season, providing 18 assists, which was the most in the league. He also scored 9 goals in 35 games.

On July 3, 2024, Galatasaray announced that Mertens had signed a new one-year contract.

International Career

Playing for Belgium

Mertens celebrating winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup bronze medal with Belgium.

Mertens had played for Belgium's youth teams before. He got his first call-up to the senior national team in October 2010. He made his debut on February 9, 2011, in a friendly game against Finland.

He scored his first goal for Belgium on August 15, 2012, in a game against the Netherlands. He came on as a substitute, scored one goal, and helped set up two others, helping Belgium win 4–2.

2014 FIFA World Cup

Mertens was chosen for Belgium's 23-player squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. In a warm-up game before the tournament, he scored a late goal to help Belgium win 1–0 against Tunisia.

In Belgium's first World Cup game, he came on at half-time and scored a late goal to give Belgium a 2–1 win. Before the World Cup, Mertens had made a bet with his father that he would score in the tournament. After the game, he posted a picture online of him shaving his father's mustache as a reward for winning the bet! He played in five games at the World Cup before Belgium was knocked out by Argentina.

UEFA Euro 2016

After the World Cup, Belgium started their qualifying games for Euro 2016. Mertens scored two goals in three minutes in their first qualifying game, a 6–0 win. The next year, he scored one goal and assisted another in a 3–1 win, which helped Belgium finish first in their qualifying group. He played in all five of Belgium's games at Euro 2016, where they lost to Wales in the quarter-finals.

Mertens after a Belgium goal in 2021

2018 FIFA World Cup

Under new coach Roberto Martínez, Mertens scored five goals during Belgium's qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This included two goals in a big 8–1 win against Estonia. He was then chosen for Belgium's World Cup squad and scored in their first game, a 3–0 win against Panama. Belgium finished third in the tournament, beating England in the third-place play-off.

UEFA Euro 2020

On June 17, 2021, Mertens played his 100th game for Belgium in a 2–1 win against Denmark during the UEFA Euro 2020.

2022 FIFA World Cup

Mertens was part of the Belgian team for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The team didn't do well and didn't make it past the group stages. In March 2023, the new Belgian coach decided not to include Mertens in the squad for upcoming games, saying he wasn't fit enough to play.

How He Plays

Dries Mertens is a very flexible and hard-working player. He is fast, creative, and good at dribbling the ball because he has a low center of gravity. This helps him get past defenders easily.

He has good vision, can pass well, and shoots accurately. He is known for both scoring goals and helping his teammates score. He often plays as a winger on the left side. From there, he can cut inside and shoot with his strong right foot. He can also play on the right side or even as an attacking midfielder. He is also good at taking free kicks.

During the 2016–17 season, his coach at Napoli, Maurizio Sarri, started playing him as a main striker or a "false nine" (a forward who drops deeper to link up play). This change worked really well, and Mertens started scoring many more goals.

Career Statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League			National cup		Europe		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Eendracht Aalst (loan)	2005–06	Belgian Third Division	14	4	0	0	—		—		14	4
AGOVV Apeldoorn (loan)	2006–07	Eerste Divisie	35	2	0	0	—		—		35	2
AGOVV Apeldoorn	2007–08	Eerste Divisie	38	15	0	0	—		—		38	15
	2008–09	Eerste Divisie	35	13	2	1	—		—		37	14
	Total		108	30	2	1	—		—		110	31
Utrecht	2009–10	Eredivisie	38	7	1	0	—		—		39	7
	2010–11	Eredivisie	31	10	4	1	12	3	—		47	14
	Total		69	17	5	1	12	3	—		86	21
PSV Eindhoven	2011–12	Eredivisie	33	21	5	3	11	3	—		49	27
	2012–13	Eredivisie	29	16	3	1	6	1	1	0	39	18
	Total		62	37	8	4	17	4	1	0	88	45
Napoli	2013–14	Serie A	33	11	4	2	10	0	—		47	13
	2014–15	Serie A	31	6	4	0	15	4	1	0	51	10
	2015–16	Serie A	33	5	2	1	5	5	—		40	11
	2016–17	Serie A	35	28	3	1	8	5	—		46	34
	2017–18	Serie A	38	18	2	1	9	3	—		49	22
	2018–19	Serie A	35	16	1	0	11	3	—		47	19
	2019–20	Serie A	31	9	3	1	8	6	—		42	16
	2020–21	Serie A	29	9	1	0	7	1	1	0	38	10
	2021–22	Serie A	30	11	1	1	6	1	—		37	13
	Total		295	113	21	7	79	28	2	0	397	148
Galatasaray	2022–23	Süper Lig	30	6	3	1	—		—		33	7
	2023–24	Süper Lig	36	9	1	0	13	3	1	0	51	12
	2024–25	Süper Lig	19	4	1	0	9	1	1	0	30	5
	Total		85	19	5	1	22	4	2	0	114	24
Career total			633	220	41	14	130	39	5	0	809	273

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Belgium	2011	8	0
	2012	8	1
	2013	6	1
	2014	13	5
	2015	7	1
	2016	13	3
	2017	10	2
	2018	16	3
	2019	9	2
	2020	4	3
	2021	9	0
	2022	6	0
Total		109	21

As of match played 1 December 2022. Belgium score listed first, score column indicates score after each Mertens goal.

International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	15 August 2012	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	11	Netherlands	2–2	4–2	Friendly
2	6 February 2013	Jan Breydel Stadium, Bruges, Belgium	16	Slovakia	2–1	2–1
3	7 June 2014	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	24	Tunisia	1–0	1–0
4	17 June 2014	Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, Brazil	25	Algeria	2–1	2–1	2014 FIFA World Cup
5	4 September 2014	Stade Maurice Dufrasne, Liège, Belgium	30	Australia	1–0	2–0	Friendly
6	10 October 2014	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	31	Andorra	5–0	6–0	UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
7	10 October 2014		31	Andorra	6–0	6–0
8	13 October 2015		41	Israel	1–0	3–1
9	10 October 2016	Estádio Algarve, Faro/Loulé, Portugal	52	Gibraltar	2–0	6–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
10	14 November 2016	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	55	Estonia	2–0	8–1
11	14 November 2016	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	55		6–1	8–1
12	9 June 2017	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia	59		1–0	2–0
13	31 August 2017	Stade Maurice Dufrasne, Liège, Belgium	60	Gibraltar	1–0	9–0
14	11 June 2018	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	69	Costa Rica	1–1	4–1	Friendly
15	18 June 2018	Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi, Russia	70	Panama	1–0	3–0	2018 FIFA World Cup
16	16 October 2018	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	78	Netherlands	1–0	1–1	Friendly
17	8 June 2019	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	84	Kazakhstan	1–0	3–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
18	6 September 2019	San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino	86	San Marino	2–0	4–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
19	5 September 2020	Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark	91	Denmark	2–0	2–0	2020–21 UEFA Nations League A
20	8 September 2020	King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium	92	Iceland	3–1	5–1
21	15 November 2020	Den Dreef, Leuven, Belgium	93	England	2–0	2–0