The 23-year-old joined the Spanish club on a season-long loan after Ipswich Town paid £3.4 million to sign him from FC Volendam during the summer. However, his move has not provided the first-team opportunities he would have hoped for, with the Dutchman yet to make an appearance.
Experienced Macedonian international Stole Dimitrievski has been Valencia’s preferred goalkeeper, while van Oevelen was left out of the matchday squad for last weekend’s 1-0 victory at Elche. The club attributed his absence to a knee injury, which is expected to keep him out for two to three weeks.
Ipswich manager Gary O’Neil has not ruled out bringing the goalkeeper back to Portman Road, although he stressed that discussions remain a matter for the club.
“I’m not involved in that at the moment. The club will be discussing it, I’m guessing. But I don’t know, to be honest, is my honest answer on that,” O’Neil said.
“Obviously the coach changed shortly after he went on loan, which can provide some more complications.
“We have high hopes for him in the future. Whether that is him finishing the whole season at Valencia or coming back to me, I’m not sure at the moment.
“We’ll just make sure we find the right solution for him and the club. Of course, Valencia will have a part in this. I’m sure that will be sorted out well in time for January.”
The managerial change has added another variable to the situation. Van Oevelen joined Valencia under Carlos Corberán, but the club subsequently appointed Javier Aguirre, potentially altering the goalkeeper’s prospects.
O’Neil acknowledged that Ipswich had been aware of the competition he would face in Spain when agreeing to the loan. The intention was not to guarantee an immediate starting place, but to expose him to a different footballing environment and a high level of coaching.
“We knew Valencia would be competitive for him. It’s not like he was going to go in as a nailed-on number one at a club of that stature. If you wanted to guarantee him first-team football, we could have obviously sent him to somewhere at not such a high level,” he explained.
“But we thought the opportunity for him to experience Spain, to work under a very good coach in Carlos Corberán and to play in a certain way would help him. But of course not all loan moves go exactly as designed.
“I don’t know what opportunities will arise in the next few weeks, but if there’s a discussion to be had, then of course I’ll be part of that.”
Ipswich have several goalkeeping options, with Kjell Scherpen, Christian Walton and Alex Palmer also on their books. That depth was one reason for allowing van Oevelen to leave in search of experience.
The coming weeks should provide greater clarity over whether Valencia still see a role for him after his recovery or whether a fresh loan move would offer a better route to regular football.