Jeremain Marciano Lens (born 24 November 1987) is a Dutch professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

who plays for club

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...

. He is a versatile attacking player, known for his pace and stamina, primarily being used as a winger or a striker, but he can successfully play as a

second striker Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

. Lens began his career at AZ, and after a loan at

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network soluti ...

, played a part in their

2008–09 Eredivisie The Eredivisie 2008–09 is the 53rd season of Eredivisie since its establishment in 1955. PSV were the reigning champions. The season began on 29 August 2008 with a game between Vitesse Arnhem and FC Groningen and ended on 10 May 2009. A total ...

triumph. In 2010, he moved to PSV, where he won the 2011–12 KNVB Cup, and in 2013 was signed by Dynamo Kyiv. He won the Ukrainian Cup in his first season, the

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

in his second, and signed for Sunderland in July 2015. Lens is a full international for the Netherlands, and has earned 34 caps. In August 2010, he received his first international

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

against

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...

and scored a debut goal. He was part of the Dutch squad which came third at the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from ...

Club career

AZ

Lens made his debut into professional football in the 2005–06 season. He played two matches for AZ that season. Before that, he played in the youth team of AZ, Omniworld,

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

and his regional team, Spartaan. In June 2007, AZ reached a deal concerning a loan involving Lens; it meant he would play the 2007–08 season for

, and that he would return to AZ the season afterwards. Lens agreed with the deal, and the player officially joined NEC on loan in the summer of 2007.

NEC (loan)

After a difficult beginning with his new club NEC before the winter, Lens' as well as his team's situation improved with Lens scoring eight goals in 16 matches. NEC qualified for the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

preliminaries. For a long time, it seemed he would join NEC permanently, but he eventually decided to return to AZ.

Return to AZ

In July 2008, Lens had an operation on his left foot, which meant he was out for some time. The 2008–09 season was a personal disappointment for Lens, who did not contribute much to AZ's championship win. When head coach

Louis van Gaal Aloysius Paulus Maria "Louis" van Gaal (; born 8 August 1951) is a Dutch former football player and manager. At club level, he served as manager of Ajax, Barcelona, AZ Alkmaar, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, as well as having three spe ...

left the team for

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...

, Lens saw a chance for himself to play more matches. He grabbed the chance under the new coach, and he played well and scored important goals for AZ.

PSV

On 21 May 2010, PSV contracted Lens for four years, swapping Dirk Marcellis as part of the deal. Lens was given the number 9 shirt, and his first year at the club was a successful one for the player. He was moved from a central position to the flanks, being more utilised on both

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

or working behind strikers as a

. He struggled to score in first few matches, but eventually became used to the new position. He reached the Europa League quarter-finals with the team, scoring 3 goals in 11 appearances, and reached 10 Eredivisie goals in 33 appearances, while the

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,2010–11 season. At the beginning of the 2011–12 season, Lens' jersey number was changed to number 11, which was free since the departure of

Nordin Amrabat Noureddine "Nordin" Amrabat ( ar, نورالدين أمرابط, ber, ⵏⵓⵓⵔⴷⴷⵉⵏ ⴰⵎⵔⴰⴱⴰⵜ; born 31 March 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Greek Super League club AEK Athens. Amrabat played ...

Kayserispor Kayseri Spor Kulübü, commonly known as Kayserispor, is a Turkish professional football club based in Kayseri. They play their home matches at the Kadir Has Stadium in red and yellow kits. The team has won one Turkish Cup in 2008 and also fi ...

in January 2011. On 6 November 2011, Lens came in from the bench against

Heracles Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptiv ...

and scored a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three w ...

, his first for the club.

Dynamo Kyiv

On 18 June 2013, Lens signed a four-year contract with Ukrainian club Dynamo Kyiv. On 29 August, he scored his first official goal for Dynamo, opening the score on the ninth minute of a 5–1 victory over Kazakhstani club

Aktobe Aktobe ( kz, Ақтөбе, Aqtöbe; russian: Актобе, Aktobe) is a city on the Ilek River in Kazakhstan. It is the administrative center of Aktobe Region. In 2020, it had a population of 500,757 people. Aktobe is located in the west of Ka ...

in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

play-offs second leg, an 8–3 aggregate win. On 6 October, Lens scored his first two goals in the

Ukrainian Premier League The Ukrainian Premier League ( uk, "Українська Прем'єр-ліга", ''Ukrayinska Premier Liha'') or UPL is the highest division of Ukrainian annual football championship. As the Vyshcha Liha ( uk, Вища ліга, ''Top League' ...

in a crushing 9–1 victory over

Metalurh Donetsk Football Club Metalurh Donetsk ( uk, Футбо́льний клуб «Металу́рг» Доне́цьк, ) was a Ukrainian professional football club based in Donetsk that went bankrupt in July 2015. History Club predecessor Football c ...

. He helped Dynamo win the Ukrainian Cup in his first season. On 23 April 2015, Lens was sent off for two bookings in the first half, as Dynamo lost 0–2 at

Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...

and were eliminated from the quarter-finals of the Europa League. His second yellow card was when the referee judged that he had dived in the penalty area. In his second and final season for Dynamo, he managed to help his team win both the Premier League and Ukrainian Cup without suffering a single defeat in both competitions.

Sunderland

On 15 July 2015, after completing a medical,

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

signed Lens for an undisclosed fee on a four-year contract. This move reunited him with head coach

Dick Advocaat Dirk Nicolaas Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former football player and coach who is currently the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag. Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a coach, including three stint ...

after previously working under him at PSV and AZ. Lens scored his first English

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

goal on 29 August 2015, securing a 2–2 draw at

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...

. He scored his second Sunderland goal against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

on 3 October 2015, lobbing the ball over goalkeeper Adrián to put Sunderland 2–0 ahead. However, Lens was then sent off after receiving two yellow cards for rash tackles, and West Ham went on to earn a 2–2 draw. The match turned out to be Advocaat's final one in charge of Sunderland, as he left the club the next day. Lens stated he was unhappy at Sunderland, suggesting he could leave the club in the January transfer window as he "did not come to the Premier League to sit on the bench". Lens started in Sunderland's

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...

third round tie against

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...

, and scored the opening goal in the match, after which Arsenal came back to win 3–1.

Fenerbahçe (loan)

On 30 August 2016, Lens was loaned to Fenerbahçe on a season-long deal.

Beşiktaş

On 6 August 2017,

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, ...

signed Lens on loan, with the option of a permanent transfer afterwards. He scored his debut goal for the club in a 2–2 draw against

Trabzonspor Trabzonspor Kulübü is a Turkish sports club located in the city of Trabzon. Formed in 1967 through a merger of several local clubs, the men's football team has won seven Süper Lig championships. Trabzonspor also have a women's football team, ...

. Playing as a replacement for

Ricardo Quaresma Ricardo Andrade Quaresma Bernardo (; born 26 September 1983) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a winger. He began his career at Sporting CP and went on to play for Barcelona, Inter Milan, Porto (twice), Chelsea, Beşiktaş ...

, he managed to find the net in the 58th minute of the match. On 7 June 2018, it was confirmed that Lens had signed four years contract for

Versailles

After not playing for any club in the 2021–22 season despite remaining under contract with Beşiktaş, on 28 July 2022 Lens signed with French third-tier

Championnat National The Championnat de France National ( en, French National Championship), commonly referred to as simply National or Division 3, serves as the third division of the French football league system behind Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. Contested by 18 clubs, ...

club

. He made his debut for the club on 26 August 2022, replacing

Jordan Leborgne Jordan Leborgne (born 29 September 1995) is a Guadeloupean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for French club Versailles and the Guadeloupe national team. Club career Leborgne is a youth exponent from Caen. He made his Ligue 1 d ...

in the 69th minute of a 2–0 home win over Bourg-en-Bresse Péronnas. Lens scored his first goal for Versailles on 25 November, coming off the bench for Mondy Prunier and scoring in injury time to secure a 2–0 victory against Villefranche Beaujolais.

International career

Suriname

Although Lens previously played for the Netherlands under-21 team, he chose to play for the Suriname national team, since his roots (parents) are Surinamese. In 2009, Lens was called up for Suriname's squad by national team coach

Wensley Bundel Wensley Rinaldo Bundel is a former Surinamese football manager and player who last managed S.V. Transvaal in the Surinamese Hoofdklasse. As a player, he played in the Hoofdklasse for S.V. Transvaal, and for the Suriname national team, helping Tr ...

, for the

Parbo Bier Cup The Parbo Bier Cup is a bi-annual International football(soccer) tournament, which is organized by the Stichting Internationaal Voetbal Suriname (SIVS) of which former Surinamese-Dutch International Stanley Menzo is the chairman. The beer brewery ...

. He scored two goals in three matches and helped Suriname finish second in the tournament. Since the tournament was not under the auspices of

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

, Lens was still eligible for a call-up for the Netherlands.

Netherlands

On 3 May 2010, Lens was called up for the Dutch national team, as a part of the preparations for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

. However, on 27 May 2010, Netherlands manager

Bert van Marwijk Lambertus van Marwijk (; born 19 May 1952) is a Dutch football manager who was recently the head coach of the United Arab Emirates national team. As a player, he played for the Go Ahead Eagles, AZ, MVV and Fortuna Sittard amongst other clubs ...

announced that the player would not be part of the final 23-man squad participating in the competition. On 11 August 2010, Lens made his debut in a 1–1 friendly draw with

, scoring the only goal for the ''Oranje''. Lens became a regular member of the Dutch team under the management of his former AZ coach Louis van Gaal. He scored five goals and made a further five assists during the 2014 World Cup qualification campaign. Lens was named in the Netherlands squad for the

2014 World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...

in Brazil. He appeared as a substitute in the Netherlands' first two Group B games (a 1–5 win over

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

and a 2–3 victory against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

) before starting in a 2–0 victory over

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

. Lens played the full 120 minutes of the semi-final against

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

, which Argentina ultimately won on penalties.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

AZ *

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...

: 2008–09 *

Johan Cruyff Shield The Johan Cruyff Shield (, ) is a football trophy in the Netherlands named after Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff, also often referred to as the Dutch Super Cup. The winner is decided in one match only, played by the winner of the national footba ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

PSV *

KNVB Cup The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Ou ...

: 2011–12 * Johan Cruyff Shield:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

Dynamo Kyiv *

: 2014–15 * Ukrainian Cup: 2013–14, 2014–15 Netherlands *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...

Third place:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

References

External links

Holland U19 stats
at OnsOranje
Holland U20 stats
at OnsOranje
Holland U21 stats
at OnsOranje * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lens, Jeremain 1987 births Living people Dutch footballers Dutch sportspeople of Surinamese descent AZ Alkmaar players NEC Nijmegen players PSV Eindhoven players Sunderland A.F.C. players FC Dynamo Kyiv players Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers Beşiktaş J.K. footballers Fatih Karagümrük S.K. footballers FC Versailles 78 players Footballers from Amsterdam Association football wingers Association football forwards Premier League players Eredivisie players Ukrainian Premier League players Süper Lig players Championnat National players Netherlands youth international footballers Netherlands under-21 international footballers Netherlands international footballers 2014 FIFA World Cup players Dutch expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Ukraine Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate footballers in Turkey Expatriate footballers in France Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine Dutch expatriate sportspeople in England Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Dutch expatriate sportspeople in France