Former FC Groningen director Hans Nijland writes a column for Dagblad van het Noorden every other week. This time about football players who leave for Saudi Arabia and Erwin Koeman who declared him crazy
There is a new trend in football. Where China used to be the promised land, you now see absolute top players such as Ronaldo, Benzema and Kante leaving for Saudi Arabia. They earn crazy salaries there, we all agree on that. The slightly lesser gods also benefit from it. Take Maher or Anita from RKC.
Of course there will immediately be criticism. We all know what’s going on in those gulf states. Human rights are not taken too seriously. In our region, we are happy to raise our finger from a kind of sense of superiority. I look at it a bit differently.
Why not turn a threat into a chance? Top sport is the perfect way to highlight alleged abuses. We have seen that with the World Cup in Qatar. So let’s not play the moral knight. What would you do if you could earn ten times as much with another employer? Does Dolly Parton sleep on her back?
Speaking of top players, it seems that Luis Suárez has played his last game. Injuries plague him. Of course, fond memories come to mind when I think of him. From the moment technical manager Henk Veldmate and I discovered him in Uruguay until his departure for Ajax.
Directors in professional football are all recovering from a tough season at the moment. I thought I could afford a week’s holiday during the transfer period. With Marieke and daughter Daantje we went to Rhodes, where our friends Erwin and Emmy Koeman were also. I had barely left the plane when I noticed that my phone was overflowing with messages. Ajax wanted Suárez and there was a lot of discussion about that.
For two days I walked a hoofbeat around a palm tree on Rhodes while talking on the phone. I can still see Erwin Koeman pointing to his forehead from the edge of the pool. It didn’t work out. Finally, I got back on the plane. Long vacations are not an option for football directors. Not that you need to feel sorry. It’s a beautiful job. And even if they are not oil state salaries, there is nothing wrong with their remuneration either.
Luis, you’re doing well.