Fierce resistance against 'Holland B'

Tuesday 11 November 2008

PSV, Ajax, Feyenoord and Heerenveen are fiercely objecting the newly started 'Holland B' team.

The four Dutch clubs are going to investigate whether there are any rules that say they must yield their players to the new team of coach Johan Neeskens.

Feyenoord had hinted before that they are not in favor of the new initiative.

The Rotterdam club only wish to deliver players for matches that are on the official FIFA calendar.

"And it's questionable whether that is the case with the matches of Holland B," says their coach Gertjan Verbeek.

"When it turns out that we are not obliged to yield our players then they will stay with us."

At a meeting of Eredivisie clubs and the Dutch FA (KNVB) PSV and Heerenveen joined Feyenoord's stance on the subject.

PSV director Jan Reker points at the busy match calendar: "Exactly in those weeks that allow us to train on specific things we would be forced to let even more players go. We first want to now if we have to."

The KNVB recently revived Holland B to fill the void between the A-team and the U-23.

The youth team will play no games for a while because they didn't qualify for the European Championships.

With Holland B, coached by Johan Neeskens and Dennis Bergkamp, the KNVB want to create a podium for those talented players who are not in the A-team.

The preselection as it was announced yesterday contains three players of Feyenoord (Hofland, Fer and Wijnaldum), three PSV players (Koevermans, Amrabat and Bakkal) and four players of Ajax (De Jong, Vermeer, Van der Wiel and Emanuelson).

The Amsterdam club – not attending the KNVB-meeting yesterday - are not jumping for joy to yield their players.

"Four players on top of the regular internationals is a bit much," says Director of Football Danny Blind.

""We are prepared to talk to the KNVB, but we are also looking at our legal position."

"Holland B will continue," says KNVB boss Henk Kesler, who emphasized that the KNVB have closely studied the rules.

Holland manager Bert van Marwijk says that the clubs know that the KNVB will consider their interests: "When the A-team play a double program the B-team will play only one game on Friday. For the time being that's only three games."

Despite the determination of the KNVB there is little chance that the matches of the B-team will end up on the FIFA calendar.

The international schedule is packed and not even the games at the Olympics were registered officially.

When FC Barcelona, Schalke 04 and Werder Bremen brought their case to the international sports tribunal CAS they won and did not have to yield players for the Olympics.

"Of course we too think it's important that players gain international experience," says Gertjan Verbeek.

"But it should be regulated. Recently Michal Janota was called up for a practice week with the Polish U-19. Then we also said: sorry but we need him now. That match was also not registered with FIFA."