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AMSTERDAM. — Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk praised opponents Hungary for their decision to play on in their Nations League clash on Saturday after assistant coach Adam Szalai appeared to have suffered a fit on the bench only minutes after kick-off.
There was a 13-minute medical delay as Szalai was treated pitch side before being taken to an Amsterdam hospital. The Hungarian federation said he was recovering.
He could be seen lying on the floor, next to the team’s bench, with his legs twitching and kicking uncontrollably as staff and substitutes quickly formed a protective barrier around him.
“That was quite a shock of course,” van Dijk told Dutch NOS television. “You see someone lying down, you see someone shaking. That is quite scary. But thankfully at a certain point it became clear that he was stable.”
Van Dijk heard from Liverpool teammate Dominik Szoboszlai, who captained Hungary, that Szalai had suffered a similar incident previously.
“But yes, it is still very scary to see. I hope he is doing well and that he recovers quickly.”
Van Dijk said it must have been difficult for Hungary to continue playing. Szoboszlai gathered his teammates in a huddle on the pitch before they agreed to carry on with clash.
“They had to decide whether they wanted to continue playing. I think it shows a lot of strength that they did carry on. I have a lot of respect for that.”
The Netherlands went onto register a 4-0 victory and make sure of a place in next March’s Nations League quarter-finals.
But Van Dijk thought his side’s performance was “sloppy” overall.
“The pitch was very fast,” he explained. “But that’s no excuse. It was sloppy. In the end we won deservedly and that’s the most important thing. We go to the quarter-finals, we win, we keep a clean sheet.”
Meanwhile, Netherlands striker Wout Weghorst has come in for sharp criticism in his own country for zealously celebrating a penalty he netted against Hungary on Saturday minutes after an opposition coach collapsed and was taken to hospital.
The Nations League clash at the Johan Cruyff Arena was stopped seven minutes after kickoff when Adam Szalai collapsed. The 36-year-old could be seen lying on the ground next to the team’s bench with his legs twitching, as staff and substitutes quickly formed a protective barrier around him.
The match was delayed for 13 minutes and Szalai taken by ambulance to hospital, where he has since recovered.
Immediately on resumption, a VAR decision gave the Dutch a penalty which Weghorst converted for a 1-0 lead.
The striker ran towards the corner flag, sliding to his knees, making a lion gesture with his hands and clenching his fist towards the Dutch fans.
But the celebration did not sit well with many in the Netherlands and he was castigated on Dutch television, in newspaper columns and on social media.
“A bit of subdued cheering would have been appropriate,” said television pundit and former international Pierre van Hooijdonk.
Weghorst was initially unaware of any wrongdoing.” I never thought for a moment that this could come across as unpleasant,” he told reporters after the 4-0 victory.
“In retrospect, you think, “would it have been more respectful to cheer less exuberantly?’ Let it be clear that his life is more important than my goal. I hope I don’t have to explain that to anyone.”
Weghorst emphasised that he knew Szalai’s condition was stable when he scored.
“Taking a penalty is normally exciting but I think this was one of my most difficult penalties ever,” he said.
“When you score it, there is pure relief and release. That’s why I didn’t realise how I was cheering.” Dutch captain Virgil van Dijk stood up for his teammate.
“I didn’t think the celebration was exaggerated at all,” said Van Dijk.” Hungary made the choice to continue playing. Then you get on with playing the match continues. That people don’t like it when you cheer . . . well, you can’t please everyone.” — Reuters.
Online Reporter