Seedorf Embitterd About Dutch Team

Clarence Seedorf is still a little embittered when he thinks about his last period at the Dutch national team. He feels unrecognized by the former national coaches Marco van Basten and Bert van Marwijk.

The 37-year-old international, who at this moment plays as a midfielder at Botafago in Brazil, shared his reflections about that period on Monday evening in the program of Johan Derksen at RTL7.

“Van Basten made a big mistake with me,” Seedorf told. “I don’t say that he was a bad trainer, but I didn’t like the way how he treated the players. Bad people management.”

In the period towards EK2008, Seedorf didn’t want to play for the national team. He was then a player in the base team of AC Milan. When van Basten stopped as national coach, he wanted to play for the national team again. However, van Marwijk said that he wouldn’t ask Seedorf because he thought that a player like Seedorf shouldn’t sit on the bench.

“That was really a weak argument,” the 87-times international told Derksen. “He shouldn’t be the one to decide for me if I can accept to sit at the side line. Somebody who is always at the base at AC Milan should always be called to join the national team. Even if I had to sit on the bench and had to fight my way into the field, no problem for me. Deep inside I am still hurt about that.”

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Seedorf has had a long and fruitful career until today. At this moment he is the most important player at Botafago and his assists always lead to winning goals.

He has been the first player to have won the Champions League four times with three different clubs: Ajax (1995), Real Madrid (1998) and AC Milan (2003, 2007).

His ability to hold the ball under pressure and then time a pass to a runner off him, makes him extremely dangerous.