Don’t you just love the reticent, softly spoken Dutch? To recall: barely a week ago, the joint 4th top-scorer in La Liga shared his thoughts on Marco van Basten -
It is a shame that the coach is not led only by the footballing qualities of players but also other things. I call it his ‘I-like-you level’.
van Nistelrooy coyly added:
If you don’t want certain personalities in the squad, just say it. [van Basten] always only says it has to do with footballing qualities, but that is not a plausible explanation.
Today comes news that van Basten had actually recalled van Nistelrooy, only to find that a phone call later, the latter’s sentiments were not borne of newspaper hyperbole or misrepresentation but rather from a genuine lack of affection toward his one-time idol.
The Dutch FA sheepishly tried to plug the leak in the dyke with the following statement:
After the telephone contact it became clear that both the technical staff of Oranje and Van Nistelrooy lack the confidence that the striker can be added to the group
