Midfielder Kenzo Goudmijn was understandably delighted to score his first goal in English football after a peerless performance from Derby County saw them win 3-0 against Bristol City at Pride Park Stadium on Saturday.
Goudmijn’s goal set Derby on the way half an hour into the game before goals from Kayden Jackson and David Ozoh in the second period secured all three points.
The Dutch midfielder joined the Rams as Paul Warne’s fourth summer signing back in July when he joined from AZ Alkmaar and has made featured in every game of the 2024/25 season for Derby.
Goudmijn caught up with RamsTV after the win over Bristol City to talk about what getting his first goal in English football meant, having his family in attendance and settling into life with the Rams.
On getting his first goal for the club…
Of course, scoring is one thing which makes me very happy, as well as helping the team. I think we did well as a team, all of us today.
On his dad attending Pride Park and seeing him score…
It was the only weekend he could come because AZ Alkmaar (where he is on the coaching staff) played on Friday in the Netherlands, so he flew here this morning. I think he's happy about how I performed! I didn't see him after the game, but I saw him in the stands; that's good. We'll go home together, so it's nice.
On his chance he missed before the goal…
I think I should have scored. I'm happy I could make up for it with another one a few minutes later! I felt like it was a good strike. I had one thing on my mind as the ball fell to me and it happened, so I'm happy it went in.
Being 1-0 up at half-time and being able to adjust some things in the game was really helpful. You could see in the first half there were some difficulties, which we took care of and we came out in the second half with a lot of energy, good shape and good tactics. We performed really well and could have scored more goals. It's a great result.
On settling into the squad and a new country…
Well, of course, it's a different type of football. The pace is really high, and you play a lot of matches. You need to get used to your team-mates, to the way of playing. I'm not saying I feel at home already, but I feel like I'm getting there and I'm settling in well. Today was a really good day. I'm happy about this match, about my performance, and also about the team's performance. I think was really good.
