Steven Bergwijn hits back at Ronald Koeman in dispute with the Netherlands: “That’s not how you treat players”

Steven Bergwijn has hit back, declaring he no longer wants to play for the Dutch coach after he publicly criticised the player's move from Ajax to Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad.

Earlier this week, Koeman made it clear that Bergwijn is no longer part of his plans because he believes the winger's transfer was based on financial incentives rather than sporting challenges. Now Bergwijn said he was angry that Koeman did not speak to him before making his comments public.

“I don’t even want to play under Koeman anymore,” Bergwijn told the Dutch newspaper The Telegraphper BBC Sports.

“I will not play for someone who portrays me in the media the way he did. He could have called me and heard my side of the story. How can he say something like that without talking to me?

“If he had been a committed national coach, he would have called me first. Now I had to find out on TV. I've had many great moments with him, so this is far too easy and I'm disappointed in him.”

Bergwijn has had a remarkable international career, Orangescored eight goals in 35 appearances, despite rarely earning a place in the starting line-up. Koeman used him twice during the Netherlands' run to the semi-finals of Euro 2024, and neither appearance saw him play for more than 45 minutes.

“The book is basically closed,” Koeman said on Tuesday, according to Mirror“I think when you are 26, your ambitions should be sporting and not financial.

“He could have stayed at Ajax, that's not bad either. And I think they pay pretty well there too. But everyone has a different opinion and it's their decision. Personally, I wouldn't have been able to do it.”

Bergwijn is not the first player whose international career ended abruptly after moving to Saudi Arabia. Midfielder Jordan Henderson's long-standing place in the England squad quickly faded when he moved from Liverpool to Al-Ettifaq, a transfer that lasted just half a season before Ajax brought him back to Europe.

The move came too late for Henderson to force his way into Gareth Southgate's Euro 2024 squad, with the drop in intensity due to the ageing player's absence as younger stars such as Kobbie Mainoo and Conor Gallagher emerged.

Bergwijn's varied career has seen him regularly go astray. Tottenham came calling after he made his name at PSV Eindhoven, but despite some memorable highlights, he failed to hold on to the first team and was quickly sold to Ajax.

Spurs fans will remember his brilliant debut goal against Manchester City or his two stoppage-time goals to secure a stunning 3-2 comeback against Leicester as positive snapshots of what the player can do.

Koeman, who gave Bergwijn his international debut in 2018, is used to criticising his players in front of the media. In November 2023, he had already suggested that Ajax striker Brian Brobbey lacked technical skills.

“He had previously publicly expressed an opinion about Brobbey which was also not nice and which he later said was not smart,” said Bergwijn. “That is not how you treat your own players. If he continues like this, he will lose all his credibility.”