Welcome to Troy Town: Parrott’s Alkmaar revival gives him options

'My game has really come on since I moved to the Netherlands," said Parrott. 'All I’ve ever wanted was regular games. I knew things would work out for me once that happened.'

Troy Parrott has score 28 goals for AZ Alkmaar this season, and there still another month to go. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Nestled in the bowels of AZ Alkmaar’s stadium is a wall gallery of former managers including Louis van Gaal, Ronald Koeman and Arne Slot. The mural stretches from one side to the next, extending to feature Marco van Basten and Dick Advocaat.

Former players aren’t so exalted after they leave but when he does eventually depart Troy Parrott will go with their best wishes. Twenty goals in his first season. Twenty-eight goals so far this term. And there’s another month of the season remaining.

Welcome to Troy Town.

Alkmaar has developed a reputation for being a launchpad for managers but in the case of Ireland’s marksman, it was the place where he rediscovered his mojo.

Tricolours are speckled around the arena, interspersed with banners by kids seeking the coveted red No 9 jersey of their hero.

The Netherlands, in general, provided the respite from the goldfish bowl he inhabited in England. Hitting double figures on loan at his first Dutch Excelsior club signified his rejuvenation.

Like most cities in the Lowlands, Alkmaar boasts an array of canals and cafés. He and his partner are regularly spotted out having coffee and the player looks very much like one of its multitude of students when cycling around the town and to training.

The pace of life is a world away from the London bustle he was immersed in during his late teens. Across what’s considered a serene city of Alkmaar, his firepower has enlivened himself and the local fanbase.

“I love it here,” he told the Irish Examiner on a recent trip, aware of interest from clubs across Europe, the latest being AC Milan. “My game has really come on since I moved to the Netherlands. All I’ve ever wanted was regular games. I knew things would work out for me once that happened.” 

Being content on and off the pitch combines for the magic potion. Decamping to the continent wasn’t envisaged when he was working through various conventional loan spells.

"There is something about the air over here,” he said in an earlier interview. “I don't know, it is like a feeling. I just enjoy it.

“If you asked me two or three years ago where I would be now, I would have never said here. That is something that kind of excites me. I am getting to live in new places. It is just about experiencing new things. There are not many people that do it. So, to try something new, it is exciting for me. It is a short life that we have. And I am not even just talking about football now. It is something you cannot get back. To be living that, it is nice."

As a trainee at Tottenham Hotspur, Parrott was compared to Robbie Keane at club and country level. One of Keane’s successors, Harry Kane, was still the main man when Parrott began to break through under José Mourinho at 17.

Alan Browne was Preston North End’s captain when his compatriot arrived for a loan spell, his fourth and final on the lower league circuit. Three goals from 32 appearances, albeit most of them as a bit-part player, didn't make his CV glisten. Browne insists it was unfair to apply that sole criteria for assessment.

“I know he didn't excel to everyone’s expectation but when you've played alongside him, some of the things I've seen them do were unbelievable,” said the Corkman.

“Especially watching them every day in training. But he delivered in games too. He didn't score many for Preston and he didn't hit the ground running in that aspect but his all-round game was unbelievable.

“He didn't really get the credit he deserved at the time. We weren’t a free-flowing team where he was going to get 10 chances a game. You might get half a chance and if you don't take it then people look at it and think your striker hasn’t scored. They don't look and think that he’d done everything else right. As a teammate, I saw him being incredible.” 

Browne, back in the Ireland squad alongside Parrott this week, feels his junior embraced the responsibility of being the €8m main man.

“There was also the pressure at Tottenham because Harry Kane was ahead of him,” he notes of the 24-year-old.

“Looking at that, it’s such a big jump to take his place in the team. Making the move away has given him that status. He first went to Excelsior on loan. They weren’t one of the best teams in the division being down the bottom and he scored goals there.

"AZ paid big money, he’s their No 9 and expected to score goals. Even after his injury earlier in the season, he was flying again. To take his club form onto the international stage as well, it just gives you the confirmation that you can do it at any level.” 

That will likely be above the Eredivisie when the summer comes around. If Parrott’s goals next month get them past Shakhtar Donetsk into the Conference League semi-finals, Alkmaar’s blessing he exits with will be absolute.

A World Cup appearance would only rocket the riches they pocket.