De Jong hoping to get back to goalscoring ways

Dutch striker Luuk de Jong hopes to put a frustrating stint at Borussia Monchengladbach behind him having arrived at Newcastle United on loan.

The 23-year-old centre forward has made 45 appearances in two seasons at Gladbach but averaged just 47.84 minutes per match and has only hit the back of the net eight times since joining the Bundesliga outfit from Twente.

De Jong has joined Newcastle for the rest of the English Premier League campaign in the hope of reviving his career after just 136 minutes in all competitions for Gladbach in the first half of the 2013-14 season.

“I’m really motivated,” De Jong told nufcTV on Wednesday.

“The first half of the season hasn’t been nice for me because I didn’t play much.

“I just want to show my talent, score goals and be successful again. That is why I’m here.”

De Jong joined Gladbach in July 2012 after 59 goals in 120 matches in all competitions for Twente and having made his full international debut for the Netherlands just five months earlier.

But with Max Kruse leading the line brilliantly for Gladbach this term, De Jong has barely got a look in and hopes St James’ Park can be the venue where he returns to the form that saw him win the Eredivisie with Twente in the 2009-10 season.

“My goalscoring record in Holland was very good and hopefully I can show that here,” the Swiss-born striker said.

De Jong may make his Newcastle debut in Saturday’s Tyne-Wear derby against Sunderland and says he cannot wait to experience the atmosphere.

“I know how big it is and I love playing in these massive matches. That is why I became a footballer,” De Jong said.

“It’s always nice to be involved in a game like that and I would love to play a part.

“We have to win it because otherwise I know we cannot walk around the streets of Newcastle.”