katero
Jun 30, 2026

Virgil van Dijk accused of 'ruining Dutch football'

Virgil van Dijk has been accused of ‘ruining Dutch football’ and told that his ‘time is up’ as local media tore into the Netherlands after their insipid exit from the World Cup.

Ronald Koeman’s men crashed out on Tuesday morning at the hands of an energetic and daring Morocco side, who were the better team and should have won in normal time but needed a penalty shoot-out to do so.

And Van Dijk, captain of both Liverpool and his national team, has been blamed for Netherlands’ early exit and ultra-defensive style which ‘betrays everything our national football stands for’.

Writing in De Telegraaf, journalist Valentijn Driessen said: ‘The way the Dutch national team presented itself to the whole world, defensively and without any initiative, is a great disgrace.

‘Koeman and his captain Van Dijk betrayed everything our national football stands for in Monterrey. By opting for an ultra-defensive style of play, Van Dijk did not have his defensive affairs in order during the World Cup group stage.

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