Daan Klomp | The Dutchman Flying in Canada

Daan Klomp - Calvary FC

I have been following Daan Klomp since he played at NAC Breda in the Eredivisie, for a short time, after graduating through their youth academy. Unfortunately, it was an experience too early for him, and after a spell at Helmond Sport, he went to the other side of the water… 

Normally this means the UK, a common destination for many Dutch players before the Brexit limitations slowed the flow to a steady stream. But Klomp went all the way to Canada where he was finally able to put together consistently impressive performances, winning both club honours with Cavalry FC and personal awards as CPL Defender of the Year 2023 and 2024 as well as being crowned CPL PLayer of the Year in 2023. 

A deserved move to La Louviere followed but very soon went back ‘home’ to Cavalry, a club where he had already clocked up over 100 appearances. 

Player Profile

The technically capable Central Defender who can also play on the Right Wing and, on a few occasions, has even featured as a Defensive Midfielder. His estimated value of € 150K (Transfermarkt) is at a level that, at the age of 27, is unlikely to deter any future interest should Europe come calling again…  

After his spell at La Louviere, he started his first minutes in August at Cavalry and afterwards did play every match from the start, which shows they continue to have a lot of confidence in his qualities - a confidence that he is returning with consistently high performances as his data via Earpiece shows:

*All screenshots with permission - data outcomes from the 2025 season 

Overall

Strengths:

• Composure

• Chance Prevention

• Intelligent Defence

Weaknesses:

• Aerial Threats

• Involvement

• Ball Progression

Involvement

Although he showed a steady contribution in aerials and defensive actions, because of a lack of touches his involvement has not been rated that well. It is also worth considering the dominance of Cavalry in the CPL.

Active Defence

He has been rated very dependable in this aspect of the game. His strong tackling abilities and because he has been highly effective in 1v1 have a significant impact on his active defence rate. 

Intelligent Defence

Klomp has been excelling in counterpressing situations. Especially in the right halfspace (own and opponent half) he has been rated very well, which shows he can make an impact on this aspect in his ‘own’ territory. It also reminds us of his previous experiences in playing as a RB/RWB, so dominance in this area of the pitch is perhaps a reflection of his comfort on this side.

Territorial Dominance

By limiting successful passes into his territory, he scores average on territorial dominance and makes himself an ideal player for a team looking for a defender who can not only break up threats but possesses the skillset to use the ball effectively and safely to prevent further turnovers.

Chance Prevention

Particularly by limiting the quality of chances created by opposition, Klomp does show a strong defensive capability in chance prevention. He is particularly adept at  utilising the ball intelligently to distribute in low-risk areas or with good quality delivery.

Defensive Heading 

Klomp shows a general competence in all defensive metrics but arguably lacks one pure quality in other metrics in this category. This versatility should not be seen as a negative but rather as a defender who can deal with a wide range of threats. However, Klomp does show a decent success rate in defensive aerials won, making him ideal for a league where this type of threat is prominent. 

Composure

Understandable for a player who has experience of playing higher upfield, Klomp rarely loses possession and demonstrates a strong composure. However, he does struggle with retaining the ball under pressure in moments where he has not been able to offload safely.

As someone who has already followed Klomp’s progress across three leagues, I am interested to see where his next destination could be, which league would best serve his skillset and provide a progressive platform?

Using the Earpiece feature for this, I was pleasantly surprised to see the Scottish Championship named as a suitable destination for him to forge a new pathway back into European football. 

Not only is Earpiece capable of identifying an ideal league to showcase a player’s talent, it also goes further by identifying an ideal team with impressive justification. 

According to Earpiece, Klomp’s ideal club would be Greenock Morton and see him as an ideal option to “strengthen Morton’s back line” while the player himself is likely to feel the benefit: “Moving from Cavalry’s balanced approach to Greenock Morton’s lower block means he will face fewer aerial balls but will need to adapt to a tighter defensive setup and quicker transitions”

---

About The Author

Willem started his coaching career ten years ago in Belgium in combination with his coaching badges. After three seasons coaching U9 and U11s, and with an UEFA B licence, he started to coach teams in the Netherlands where he continues to coach.

In 2021 he started getting involved in the data side of the game and later started as a correspondent at StatsPerform regarding Dutch 3rd tier matches.

Written by Willem van Riel | @DutchProFootballScout

Editor: Richard Ogando | @notts_stats

Editor: Colin Sisson | @colin_sisson

Get in Touch

Enquiries: analysts.bar@gmail.com 

X: @AnalystsBar