Motherwell assistant manager Stephen Frail has refused to rule out a deadline-day move for former striker Kevin van Veen.
The 32-year-old has fallen out of favour at Groningen and the club are open to offers, although a loan deal could be the only option as the final hours of the window approaches.
When asked if a return was out of the water, Frail said: “I’m not sure anything’s out the water. That could be one of those last-minute things.
“We all know what a fantastic end of the season Kev had, he was absolutely terrific, but I think a big part of that was his team-mates, the way they serviced him, but also the way the manager managed him.
“They have a really good relationship and wherever Kev goes I’m sure he will be an asset to whatever club he joins.”
The striker joined the Steelmen in the summer of 2021, reuniting with former manager Graham Alexander and scored his first goal on his league debut in a 3-2 defeat to Hibernian.
He scored nine goals in 32 appearances during his first year at Fir Park and in July 2022, he signed a one-year contract extension until the summer of 2024.
Van Veen enjoyed a record-breaking second season with the Well, converting goals in seven consecutive league matches for the first time since Dixie Deans in the 1968/69 season.
His goalscoring success continued, where after ten matches he equalled Motherwell’s top-flight scoring record set by Hughie Ferguson in 1920.
This included reaching the number of goals recorded in the modern Scottish football era by Mark Viduka for Celtic from 1998 to 2000 and Marco Negri, who played at Rangers between 1997 and 2001.
He then scored in the final match for Stuart Kettlewell’s side last season, which created a new club and league goalscoring record of 11 matches in-a-row.
Further recognition would follow for the striker at the conclusion of the 2022/23 campaign with a place in the PFA Scotland team of the year and a nomination for the player of the year award.
This earned the Dutchman an opportunity to return to the Netherlands in June of last year, but he has struggled to gain game time since departing Lanarkshire.
Motherwell are currently ninth in the Premiership table on 21 points and are only two points clear of the relegation play-off spot.
Kettlewell’s men have been unable to maintain consistency this season with only one league win in their last 18 and no consecutive victories since September.
If the club can entice Van Veen back to the ML1, they will hope he will be able to rediscover his goalscoring exploits from his first spell, while the forward himself, who had a year remaining on his previous contract, could feel he has unfinished business.
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