Netherlands head coach, Ronald Koeman has reportedly claimed that Steven Bergwijn placed financial ambition over his footballing aspirations following his €25 million move to Saudi Pro League outfit, Al Ittihad.
The 61-year-old further stated that he will not consider the former Tottenham Hotspur star for international duty for the foreseeable future.
According to ESPN, the news of Bergwijn’s transfer from Ajax to Al Ittihad on Monday infuriated Koeman, who said that the deal was not the same as Georginio Wijnaldum’s departure from PSG for Al Ettifaq in September 2023.
“Georginio Wijnaldum once went that way because he had a problem at Paris Saint-Germain,” Koeman said. “He could only go to that country to play football until January.
“In Bergwijn’s case is that he goes at the age of 26, sporting ambition does not prevail. Not everyone thinks, fortunately, the same way.
“I think when you are 26 the main ambition should be sporting and not financial, but those are choices players make.”
In Saudi Arabia, Bergwijn will be a part of Laurent Blanc’s side alongside N’Golo Kanté, Karim Benzema, Fabinho, Houssem Aouar, Predrag Rajkovic, and Moussa Diaby.
Bergwijn had no obligation to accept the Saudi offer, according to Koeman.
“He could have stayed at Ajax, couldn’t he? And I think they pay OK at Ajax too. But yes, it’s his choice,” he said.
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