Davy Klaassen has in an interview with de Volkskrant responded to his reserve role at Ajax. The attacking midfielder indicates that it irritates him when he sits on the bench. The the Dutch international also discusses the last European Championship, where he had to settle for a supporting role under the now departed national coach Frank de Boer and did not play for a minute.
De Boer preferred Marten de Roon, Frenkie de Jong and Georginio Wijnaldum in the midfield of the Dutch during the European Championship. Klaassen had to hope for a substitute, but it didn’t come to that. “I went to the European Championship with the idea of being a basic player,” said Klaassen, who ended up on the bench against his expectations, partly because the national coach opted for the much-discussed 5-3-2 system. “Then De Boer went to a different system and chose other guys. I may not like that, but you have to make sure you’re there when something happens. But yes, nothing came.”
Klaassen calls it ‘irritating’ that he had to warm up for a long time and did not fall in. “Even in that last group match, against North Macedonia, where nothing mattered. I was done with it for a while and wondered: what am I still doing here? No, I did not ask De Boer why. He must have had his reasons. I don’t know why I didn’t ask,” said Klaassen, who was allowed to call himself a basic player in recent international matches under the current national coach Louis van Gaal.
At Ajax, Klaassen lost his base place to Steven Berghuis. The purchase took his chance on the position of attacking midfielder while Klaassen was in the rags basket. Ajax coach Erik ten Hag explained last Tuesday prior to the Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund (4-0) why Berghuis is preferred over Klaassen: “Why Berghuis and not Klaassen? Because Berghuis has played great in recent weeks,” Ten Hag told RTL7. “Certainly in the Champions League, both in Lisbon and against Besiktas. There he was decisive and decisive. The shape has been the deciding factor. I also know that Davy is a very good option. It’s a tough choice, because you know Davy can bring it for you.”
Klaassen has to settle for a role as a substitute for the time being. He says it annoys him when he sits on the couch. “Other people say: you have a big contract, you’re at a great club, what are you worried about? But at that moment I want to play. If you don’t have that feeling, it goes downhill quickly,” says the Ajax player. “I have come a long way because of that attitude. It’s simple: if you’re fit and not playing, that sucks. The trainer also sees that I am not happy then. It’s not easy for him either. He’s not just dealing with me.”