Bergwijn's Conflict with Ronald Koeman: What's Behind the Rift

Perhaps in one of the most recent and highly publicized incidents, Dutch footballer Steven Bergwijn publically criticized Netherlands national team manager Ronald Koeman. The whole controversy started with Koeman’s comments. He suggested that Bergwijn’s transfer from Ajax to Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League had been for “money,” not sporting ambitions. He further insinuated that the move could someday cost him a place in the national team.

This deal illustrates how Bergwijn’s career, always shining bright with clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and Ajax, serves him quite well. Koeman’s comments had, however, gotten under Bergwijn’s skin. He felt that what the manager did was disrespecting him in a manner so unprofessional, making it known publicly.

I don’t even want to play under Koeman anymore, “If he had been a committed national coach, he would have called me first. Now I had to hear about it on TV. I’ve had many beautiful moments with him, so this is far too easy and I’m disappointed with him.
“I have always considered it an honour to play for Oranje. But under this national coach, I no longer want to do that. With someone who deliberately portrays me like that in the media, I am done. But who knows if there will be a new national coach in the future.
“I myself will never close the door. And I will only support my teammates at Oranje, just as they do with me. I have only received good messages from the internationals after my transfer. Everyone is happy for me. That is how it can be.”

The forward underlined that a committed and respectful national coach would have called him up for a personal talk over the situation in the first place before such statements. Bergwijn claimed that this was not the first time Koeman had hung a player out to dry in public without speaking to him in advance. He referred to an earlier incident involving Ajax striker Brian Brobbey, where Koeman had made critical remarks about him without speaking directly with him.

Adding to the controversy, Bergwijn’s transfer deal was sizeable. He transferred from Ajax to Al-Ittihad on a contract worth €21 million. This comes after Bergwijn joined Ajax from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2022 for €30 million. Notwithstanding this financial loss on the part of Ajax, the technical director, Alex Kroes, said this transfer provided the club with the needed financial flexibility to get a suitable replacement.

Bergwijn’s response has widened to include a more considerable debate about the relationship between players and managers and how paramount direct communication and mutual respect are in professional sports. Many feel that Koeman’s approach was inappropriate and that such matters should have been handled in privacy to maintain team morale and unity.

For his part, Koeman explained that Bergwijn’s transfer did not reflect the sporting ambition he would like to see from his national team players. He reiterated that whatever comments he had passed were not a way of personal attacks but to show him his opinion about the player’s choice in his career path.

He could have stayed at Ajax, couldn’t he? And I think they pay OK at Ajax too, “But yes, it’s his choice. I think when you are 26 the main ambition should be sporting and not financial, but those are choices players make.”
“I think going to such a league as the Saudi Pro League does not correspond to the sporting ambitions we want to see from our national team players,”
Koeman said

This incident has given a fair amount of balance that managers have to deal with when players make decisions about their careers. It clearly indicates how much open and respectful communication is needed to avoid misunderstandings and create the right team atmosphere.

What would you think has been going on here? Do you think Bergwijn was right, or do you think Koeman had something?