NAC Breda has responded in a statement to the events during the home match with FC Groningen (3-2) last Friday. The match was temporarily stopped after half an hour of play after Kevin van Veen cheered provocatively after his goal close to the fanatical part of the NAC supporters.
The 32-year-old Groningen striker explained after the match why he did what he did. “I like emotion, but there are grown men with children there who wish my daughter the k-word. My daughter has not even been born yet and she is already being threatened.”
Club council NAC already released a statement on Saturday afternoon. “We want to get to the bottom of the matter and make an urgent appeal to NAC and the KNVB,” said NAC Club Council. The latter is an organization that provides advice to the club from Breda on behalf of supporters. “Start an investigation into the existence of the messages (to Van Veen, ed.). If they are there, investigate whether they actually come from an NAC supporter and then take appropriate measures.”
The statement went down the wrong way with Van Veen. “Stop it man,” he wrote on In a later post, he even said that gestures were made suggesting the death of his unborn child.
Statement from NAC
The residents of Breda have now also responded. “After sixteen seconds the ball was in the corner at the B-Side. There we notice that an individual briefly shouts something in the direction of two FC Groningen players. It is impossible to explain exactly what was said there. It is clear that it comes from the angle where Van Veen later expresses his frustrations.”
“After Van Veen’s equalizer, he gives free rein to his frustrations by cheering emphatically provocatively for the B-Side. The striker later indicated that chants were heard before taking the free kick. The images and sound recordings show that this was not the case.”
“Some time after the equalizer, part of the Rat Verlegh Stadium responded with chants. We obviously disapprove of this,” said NAC. “Completely in accordance with protocol, the stadium speaker has called for this to be stopped.”
“The striker was taken off during injury time. During his journey to the dressing room, an individual made a gesture towards the striker that went beyond all bounds,” the club continues. “NAC has identified the perpetrator and will take appropriate measures. This behavior has no place in our stadium.”
“We have also apologized to FC Groningen for this. The striker is considering filing a report. Contrary to what was reported in some media, Van Veen’s dissatisfaction concerns an individual action by two supporters,” concludes NAC.