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Calvin Bassey has a knight in shining armour defending him from criticism by the Dutch media
Dutch legend Willem van Hanegem has leapt to Calvin Bassey's defence as the Nigerian defender continues to face lots of criticism at Ajax.
Van Hanegem who made 52 appearances for the Netherlands between 1968 and 1979 has come out to speak in favour of Bassey which is against the trend of constant criticism since the Nigerian joined Ajax.
Bassey's abilities have been questioned by Dutch football stakeholders and pundits including Wesley Sneijder but Van Hanegem believes the 23-year-old is being scapegoated.
Willem van Hanegem defends Calvin Bassey
Writing in his Algemeen Dagblad column, van Hanegem claims that the unfair criticism Bassey has faced since joining Ajax has affected his confidence and contributed to some of his poor performances.
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“This boy can really defend, but they constantly put him in situations for which he is less suitable as a player,” van Hanegem said, referring to the decision to move Bassey from central defence to left-back in Ajax's 0-0 draw against Twente.
“Ajax was always the club that could destroy teams by playing football from behind. That is not possible with Jorge Sánchez, Bassey and Devyne Rensch. Jurriën Timber does have those capacities, but they have not improved," the former Feyenoord player and coach said.
The 78-year-old assuredly continued, “I think Bassey would never have made that mistake. Rensch was one-on-one against Ricky van Wolfswinkel, not really a fast striker. And he was so surprised. Unbelievable as far as I’m concerned.”
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Willem van Hanegem played football over the span of a 20-year career and then coached for a further 18 years, last managing Utrecht in thee 200/08 season so this is a very experienced man who knows what he's talking about.
Bassey has played every game he's been available for since joining Ajax in the summer from Rangers for 18 million including 14 Eredivisie appearances, scoring once and assisting twice.
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