Xavi addresses Ruben van Bommel
1 min readThe Netherlands national team plays Thursday evening in the Nations League against Germany. It will be Oranje’s first match under Xavi Hernandez.
In the run-up to the match against Die Mannschaft, the Spanish coach held a press conference in Zeist. In it, Xavi also addressed PSV player Ruben van Bommel.
Van Bommel, thanks to his strong performances at PSV, forced his way into the squad of the Spanish coach. A year ago, the winger was badly injured in the league match against Ajax (2-2), which ruled the PSV player out for the rest of the season.
Now the attacker is back again, and that hasn’t escaped Xavi either. ''We’re going to train this afternoon and tomorrow morning we’ll decide on the squad. They’re training well and are motivated. I’m happy with everyone, and especially with the younger players,'' says the Spaniard about Van Bommel and Feyenoord player Gjivai Zechiël, quoted by Voetbal International.
In the event of an initial starting spot or substitute appearance on Thursday evening, Van Bommel would make history. The PSV player would then be the first footballer in the history of Dutch football to be active in the shirt of Oranje just like his grandfather and father.
Still, for the PSV player, that isn’t a reason to celebrate when it comes to that. “Of course that’s quite special, but I don’t see it as a reason for a celebration. You have to win something for that. Although my father played for the Netherlands national team for a long time and I went along quite often as a kid, it still can’t be compared to when you’re selected yourself. It’s all new; you have to take a moment to see how everything works and then adjust yourself,” Van Bommel said earlier in an interview with VI.
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"Daarvoor moet je wat winnen." Helemaal waar. Maar als hij dan ook echt geschiedenis wil schrijven, dan heb ik van Ruben wel goals of assists nodig tegen Duitsland, geen cameo en hoop op het beste 💯
If Van Bommel starts or comes on, becoming the first player with father and grandpa in Oranje is unreal. But i like what he says about not comparing it as a kid vs being selected yourself. Still, against Germany PSV should be a bit more than "story mode" 🚀
That part about being out after the Ajax 2-2 injury last year... ouch. Glad he is back, but idk if he is ready to handle Germany's pressure from the left. Training talk is cool, i want to see him dueling and defending too 👀
Die blessure tegen Ajax (2-2) vorig jaar maakte het zo onzeker, en nu terug. Respect, maar imo dont oversell hem als alles gelijk meteen perfect gaat. Met Duitsland moet je elke duel winnen, anders ben je er snel uit.
Xavi die zegt "We gaan vanmiddag trainen en morgenochtend bepalen we de selectie" ... fair, maar ik wil nu al weten wie links voor moet spelen. Ruben vs Zechiël, daar kan Xavi moeilijk onderuit komen als het niveau gelijk ligt 👀
Tbh i get Ruben is motivated, but i just hope Xavi doesnt overhype the story about his family. "Geen reden voor feest" is actually the right mentality. Now let him perform, not just represent history 💯
Nice to see Xavi bringing Van Bommel into the spotlight again. That quote about "morgenochtend bepalen we de selectie" feels like he wants to reward good training, not just reputation. If he gets minutes against Germany, that would be a massive PSV moment 🔥⚽
Wat die geschiedenis zegt, klinkt echt vet (opa en vader), maar i know Ruben denk ook gewoon aan minuten maken. Als hij start, moet hij scherp zijn, want Duitsland straft elke twijfel af 🔥
Ruben van Bommel erbij met die quote "je moet wat winnen" is precies de juiste instelling. Maar tbh ik ben benieuwd of Oranje dit tegen Duitsland echt kan controleren, of dat het weer chaos wordt.