Tasos Douvikas and Xavi Simons winners of the Willy van der Kuylen Trophy 2022/23

Tasos Douvikas made 32 appearances for FC Utrecht in the Eredivisie this season. In those matches, the Greek striker attempted 80 shots, with 39 shots on target. Nineteen of his shots resulted in goals, with eighteen of them scored inside the penalty area and one from outside. Douvikas scored twelve goals with his right foot, four with his left foot, and three with his head.

Douvikas put FC Utrecht in a 1-0 lead eight times this season, surpassing the record previously held by Erik Willaarts (who achieved this nine times in the 1986/87 season). The top scorer nited two hat-tricks this season, becoming the second FC Utrecht player to achieve this milestone, alongside Erik Willaarts. Douvikas is the third Greek top scorer in the Eredivisie, following Nikos Machlas and Georgios Giakoumakis. Excluding Dutch players, only Brazil has had as many top scorers in the Eredivisie (Romário, Ronaldo, and Afonso Alves).

Xavi Simons played in all 34 matches for PSV in the Eredivisie this season. The PSV player attempted an impressive 93 shots, with 39 shots on target. Simons scored seventeen goals inside the penalty area and two from outside. Additionally, the 20-year-old forward scored sixteen goals with his right foot, two with his head, and one with his left foot.

Xavi Simons is the first PSV player to become the top scorer of the Eredivisie since Luuk de Jong in the 2018/19 season (shared with Dusan Tadic). At 20 years and 37 days old, Simons is the youngest top scorer of the Eredivisie since Ronaldo in the 1994/95 season when he was 18 years old, also representing PSV.

Excluding the 2019/20 season affected by COVID-19, this is the sixth time in history that not one, but two players have become top scorers in the Eredivisie. In the 1965/66 season, Willy van der Kuylen and Piet Kruiver both scored 23 goals to share the top scorer title. In the 1968/69 season, Dick van Dijk and Ove Kindvall (30 goals) achieved the same, followed by Willy Brokamp and Cas Janssens (18 goals) in 1972/73, and Dennis Bergkamp and Romário (25 goals) in 1990/91. The most recent year was in the 2018/19 season with Luuk de Jong and Dusan Tadic, both scoring 28 goals.

Tasos Douvikas and Xavi Simons surpassed Sydney van Hooijdonk (16) and Santiago Giménez (15) among others on the top scorers' list. As a result, they win the third and fourth Willy van der Kuylen Trophies, which will be awarded at the Eredivisie Awards on 4th September 2023. The Eredivisie Awards also include prizes for Eredivisie Player of the Year, Johan Cruyff Talent of the Year, and Women's Eredivisie Player of the Year.

In 2021, the Eredivisie CV decided to name an official award after Willy van der Kuylen, the all-time top scorer of the Eredivisie, following his passing. The trophy is a replica of the official Skiete Willy statue, which has been located on the east side of the Philips Stadion since 2004. Georgios Giakoumakis won the inaugural edition in 2021 and received the award from Nelly and Mark van der Kuylen, the widow and son of Mister PSV, respectively. Last year, former Ajax player (now with Borussia Dortmund) Sébastien Haller received the award at the Eredivisie Awards.