Steven Bergwijn opens the door wide for a return to the Netherlands. The Tottenham Hotspur attacker came on Sunday nine minutes before the end against Leicester City (3-1 win); his last base place in the Premier League dates back to January 23 (2-0 defeat at Chelsea). In Bergwijn’s eyes, a base place at Tottenham is unrealistic. With a view to the World Cup in November, he would like to play more often.
“A basic place? Here? I honestly don’t think so,” Bergwijn admits in conversation with the General Newspaper† “It’s a difficult story for me. It’s good in the front, but I don’t play much.” Bergwijn is focusing on the season finale for the time being and then wants to ‘see what is best for both parties’. “It is important to me that I start playing now,” agrees the eighteen-time international of the Dutch, whose contract in London runs until mid-2025.
Bergwijn sees a transfer to Ajax, which made a futile attempt to bring him in in the winter, as an option. “It certainly would. A return to the Netherlands would certainly be an option for me. The World Cup is coming. Mr. Van Gaal, the national coach, brought me into the selection last time, even though I didn’t play much.” Bergwijn scored twice against Denmark (4-2 win) and once against Germany (1-1) in March, but did not get off the bench as a club.
“Then you come back to the club and you barely play. Damn of course. In the summer we really have to look for a solution”, Bergwijn looks ahead. His decisive double on January 19, during a substitute against Leicester City (2-3 win), did not provide Bergwijn with a starting spot. “I thought I would get more playing time after that, but unfortunately that didn’t happen.” Erik ten Hag is charmed by Bergwijn, but exchanges Ajax for Manchester United. “I haven’t spoken to him yet, but who knows, maybe that will happen,” Bergwijn winks. Ajax would have offered eighteen million euros for Bergwijn in January, but Tottenham did not agree.