Tottenham flop blacklisted from national team in new career low after £17m transfer | Football | Sport
Tottenham flop Steven Bergwijn has been blacklisted from the Netherlands squad by Ronald Koeman after completing a move to the Saudi Pro League. Bergwjn spent 18 months in north London after joining in 2020 but struggled to make the grade and was eventually sold to Ajax.
The 26-year-old helped Ajax to win the Eredivisie in his first year at the club but was among several players to fall short of expectations last season. Over the summer, he was deemed surplus to requirements before moving to Saudi club Al-Ittihad.
Bergwijn was initially linked with a potential move to Southampton, which would have seen him return to the Premier League after two years away. However, he ended up joining Al-Ittihad in a deal worth around £17million, putting pen to paper on a lucrative three-year contract.
The former Tottenham winger was named in the Dutch squad for Euro 2024 and made two appearances at the tournament. However, it seems Bergwijn may have represented his country for the last time after being brutally axed by Koeman.
Quizzed on why Bergwijn was not included in the squad for this week’s international fixtures, the Netherlands boss replied: “Steven Bergwijn goes to Saudi Arabia at the age of 26. It’s clear this has nothing to do with sporting ambition. His book with the Dutch national team is closed.”
It remains to be seen if Bergwijn will be able to work his way back into the Netherlands side if Koeman is replaced by another coach in the future. For now, his main focus will be to make a fast start to life in Saudi Arabia with his new club Al-Ittihad.
His move to the Gulf state will see him link up with former Premier League stars N’Golo Kante, Moussa Diaby and Fabinho. Karim Benzema remains the star name at the club following his high-profile move from Real Madrid last year.
Bergwijn was one of several players to join the Saudi exodus over the summer, with the likes of Ivan Toney and Kurt Zouma following suit. The former joined Al-Ahli from Brentford in a £40m deal, while the latter signed for Al-Orobah on loan from West Ham.
Others such as Houssem Aouar, Jean Michael Seri, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and William Troost-Ekong also moved to the Saudi Pro League before last week’s transfer deadline. Napoli forward Victor Osimhen nearly joined them but a proposed switch to Al-Ahli fell through at the eleventh hour.
