In Nijmegen, people look back on his departure to PSV: ‘Of course I understand what was going through his mind.’

At the beginning of last month, it became clear that Kodai Sano would be leaving NEC, as he was set to sign a contract with PSV at the moment when the Nijmegen side were preparing for the match against Olympiacos in the Champions League qualifying round. On matchday itself, Sano decided to fly back to the Netherlands, which led to a lot of frustration among the club management in Nijmegen.

Despite this, there is no resentment within the Nijmegen Eendracht Combinatie towards the Japanese. That tells technical director Carlos Aalbers in an interview with Voetbal International.

Aalbers sought personal contact with the midfielder. ''I later sent Kodai a proper message. He delivered a great performance for three years and behaved brilliantly. In the winter, we kept him here, and he settled in well. He then also made his contribution to achieving European football'', the TD says.

Afterwards, Aalbers says he can bring himself to understand Sano's decision. ''Kodai is a great guy, really. And of course I understand what was going on in him. It's a great step and he can now earn a lot more than he could at NEC. In addition, Kodai had already experienced two disappointments, first in the winter and then with the deal with Hoffenheim being called off. Now his environment also had a lot of influence on him. I understood Kodai personally, but the timing was simply far from ideal. For us it was a historic match; then I just felt bad for the players, the coaching staff, and the supporters'', that's how it sounds.

Despite the deal, it was simply the intention that the midfielder would play for Dick Schreuder's team in Greece. ''That was the agreement and that's why I was in front of the camera after the match as well. I had to explain it from our side, otherwise supporters might have thought we had completely lost our minds. Which idiot negotiates for a star player on the day of the match? I've learned from it though. Next time, maybe we can carry those talks over beyond the match,'' says Aalbers.

The TD also confirms that there is no resentment toward PSV. ''Toward PSV and Kodai, there is absolutely no ill feeling, you know. We recently even negotiated with PSV about Ouaissa. We know how it works; in football, it’s sometimes a give and take'', Aalbers concludes.