Jacob Ondrejka Joins FC Groningen on Loan
Jacob Ondrejka is on the move again. The Swedish midfielder has joined FC Groningen on loan from Parma, aiming to hit the ground running in the Eredivisie and be ready for Sunday’s clash with newly promoted ADO Den Haag.
If the paperwork clears in time, the 23-year-old could be thrown straight into the squad for Groningen’s second league game of the season. For Ondrejka, it would be a return to familiar territory, if not a familiar league. He has already made his name in the Low Countries once, just across the border in Belgium with Antwerp.
Career Progression
Ondrejka’s journey began back home with Landskrona BoIS, where his potential quickly pushed him up the ladder. In 2020 he joined Elfsborg and grew into a key attacking threat. Across 110 games, he scored 20 goals, building the kind of profile that attracts scouts from abroad.
Antwerp came calling in the summer of 2023. The move to Belgium marked his first step outside Sweden, and he adapted quickly. Over a season and a half with the Great Old, he racked up 55 appearances, scoring 12 times and laying on seven assists. By midway through his second campaign, he had already hit seven goals and five assists in 26 matches. Those numbers opened the door to Serie A and a transfer to Parma.
The start in Italy was promising. Ondrejka finished that season with 12 appearances for Parma and five goals, a sharp return for a newcomer finding his feet in a more demanding league. The momentum stalled last season. Used more sparingly, he featured in just 17 games and failed to register a goal or an assist.
Parma still see value in him; his contract runs until 2029. But minutes have become harder to find, and the need for a reset is obvious. That is where Groningen step in.
For the Dutch club, this is a calculated gamble on a player who has already proved he can produce in a league with similar rhythms and intensity just over the border. For Ondrejka, it is a chance to feel like a leading man again, to rediscover the Antwerp version of himself rather than the frustrated figure of last season in Italy.
If he can tap back into that form in Groningen green, this loan will not just revive a season. It could reshape the next phase of his career.
