Virgil van Dijk has hit back at a Dutch reporter after being accused of "betrayal" following the Netherlands' World Cup exit in the summer. The Liverpool defender was involved in a tense exchange with journalist Valentijn Driessen, who criticised both Van Dijk and former national team boss Ronald Koeman.
Accusations over tactical switch
The Dutch saw their hopes ended in the first knockout round as they lost to Morocco in a penalty shootout, which led to an inquest from the country's media. The loss saw Koeman shown the door, but the former boss and Van Dijk both copped particular criticism from De Telegraaf journalist Valentijn Driessen.
Driessen claimed that the Liverpool defender and Koeman "betrayed everything our national team stands for" by playing with a back five. The journalist suggested that the tactical tweak was done so as to protect Van Dijk, now 32, and perhaps no longer at the absolute peak of his powers.
Van Dijk's response
Under new boss Xavi, the Liverpool ace remains an integral figure, but clearly wanted to settle scores with Driessen. He asked what went wrong at the major tournament in a Dutch press conference and responded: "Well, it's easy to say in hindsight: 'We should have done this differently' or 'We should have done that differently'."
"One of your colleagues also said, of course, that it was my idea to switch to playing with a back five. That is utter nonsense. The fact is we simply failed at the World Cup; those are the hard facts."
Driessen responded: "I feel like you aren't acting like your usual self. A bit curt, as if the media is still getting under your skin."
Exchange cut short
Van Dijk hit back, insisting his only motivation was to right the wrongs that had been spouted by the media: "I've never had anything against the media, but when nonsense is being sent out there… (I have to respond) We didn't play a good World Cup. It's not about me. You perform together; you're a team. Your claim that I destroyed Dutch football after the World Cup – that sort of thing is completely baseless…"
Before the journalist had a chance to come back, the Dutch press officer intervened, bringing an end to their back and forth. The Netherlands will begin their new era with a game against arch rivals Germany before taking on Serbia twice, sandwiched between a game against Greece.
