Dutch International Mark Van Bommel comes to Nigel De Jong's rescue
Dutch veteran midfielder Mark Van Bommel has come to the aid of his World Cup team mate, Nigel De Jong. The midfielder has gone on to insist that De Jong is not actually as bad as everyone is accusing him of being, but in
fact he is nothing less than an all around 'Sweet Guy.'
Van Bommel went ahead and made these comments despite the fact that De Jong in the last six months has managed to go kung fu on Xabi Alonso's chest and caused the player to suffer a fractured rib, while at the same time breaking
two people’s legs and potentially pre-maturely ending their careers.
After having broken Ben Arfa's leg this past weekend, De Jong has been dropped from the Dutch national side by coach Bert Van Marwij. However Van Bommel has told everyone that De Jong is still a part of the long term plans
for the team and the manager.
Van Bommel was reported to have said, “Nigel is and remains one of us. We find this all very frustrating. It’s very unfortunate that he has broken the leg of an opponent twice in six months. But I know Nigel as a sweet guy.
“He doesn’t want to injure anyone but wants to win every match. That is his strength. Thanks to Nigel we reached the final of the World Cup. And now I hear people calling him a criminal. What nonsense.”
In the past both Van Bommel and De Jong have been put under the microscope for playing the game far more aggressively than it needs to be played. Both the players were amongst the most aggressive during the World Cup; in
fact most people still wonder how Van Bommel got through the course of the entire tournament without picking up a single red card. Despite that fact, Van Bommel still feels a little sympathy for his midfield partner. The player was reported to have further
said, “I know exactly what Nigel is suffering. I have also had to answer for playing hard. But I didn’t want to injure anyone and I have had to think about that criticism.”
“Nigel should not change his game, we need him as he is. But maybe he should occasionally go into a tackle slightly differently.”
Nigel De Jong is quite possibly one of the toughest midfielders in the world at the moment - in fact he might just be one of the toughest the game has ever seen. However this does not change the fact that a player’s career
might have been cut dramatically short thanks to De Jong's overly aggressive behavior. If De Jong does not realize the error of his ways on his own, then perhaps no one else can convince him that what he did was wrong. That being said, once we look at his
tackle on Ben Arfa on repeat, we can say that it was all down to some misfortune on both the players’ part. De Jong clearly went for the ball on the tackle, but Ben Arfa's studs happened to get caught in the grass which resulted in him ultimately breaking
his leg. That being said, De Jong should still realize that playing such a dangerous game will only result in some serious bans and fines for him in the future.
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