The Netherlands international has become our fourth summer signing – following in the footsteps of her international compatriot Caitlin Dijkstra, Shekiera Martinez and Kirsty Hanson.
She joins following three-and-a-half seasons in the Women’s Super League with Arsenal, making 56 appearances in total in the league, plus experience in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Set for a new chapter in her footballing journey, we get to know the versatile midfielder below.
Full of many talents
While she forged a successful footballing career to date, Victoria could have gone down the route of a different sport when she was younger.
Throughout her school years, she excelled at snowboarding, chess and tennis alongside football as just another string to her bow of talents.
She was even a junior chess champion in the Netherlands!
Thankfully, she chose to pursue football and is now a Lilywhite player.
Combining studies and playing
After deciding to stick with football and pursue a career to become a professional, the box-to-box midfielder wanted even more away from the pitch.
She enrolled at Delft University of Technology to study applied mathematics, which she described previously as ‘maths’ as her favourite subject in school.
Showcasing her work rate on and off the pitch, Victoria juggled a youth football career and an applied maths degree.
Making her mark
It wasn’t always straightforward for Victoria when growing up.
With a lack of female football teams in and around her area, she had no other choice to play in a boys side but she spoke about how that experience helped develop her into the player she is today.
Speaking in an external interview, she explained: “The physical aspect, handling speed - I learned all that from the boys. I had to, or I would be pushed over by them,” she said.
“I didn’t want to leave them, I had known them since U7’s so they were my best friends.”
Familiar faces
Although Victoria would have played against many of players during her time in the Women’s Super League so far, she has also played alongside a couple in her club and international career.
Joining Ajax in 2019, she would team up in Amsterdam with our number one Lize Kop and recent summer arrival Caitlin Dijkstra while also representing their national team at a senior level.
Versatility is key
A midfielder by trade, Victoria has clearly shown her ability to adapt on the football pitch and produce key performances in different positions.
While she can play as either an attacking midfielder, creating and scoring goals, or slightly deeper to act as a shield for the defence, she has also been utilised on the wing and at full-back in the WSL and UEFA Women’s Champions League.
But she has always received her praise from her coaches and in particular her former Ajax coach, Danny Schenkel, who told the Olympics official website ahead of the 2020 summer games: “If you see what she can do with a ball, it is something you rarely see on the Dutch fields.”
Favourite sportsman
When asked to list her favourite sportsman of all time in a TikTok video with her former club, she answered with Spain legend Andrés Iniesta.
A World Cup winner with Spain in 2010, when he scored the winning goal for his nation in the final against her homeland, the Netherlands, Victoria has looked up to the former FC Barcelona man.
Immediate impact
After spending the early part of her career in the Netherlands, Victoria made the switch to England to join the Women’s Super League with Arsenal in January, 2023.
Then, in just her second game for the club, a Women’s FA Cup fourth round tie against Leeds United, she scored her first goal and provided two assists in a 9-0 win at home.
She would then later feature in their Women’s League Cup final against Chelsea in February, 2023, as they overcame the Blues 3-1 to win the trophy.
