Jurgen Klopp ignites row with Rafael van der Vaart after former Spurs midfielder compared Virgil van Dijk to a Boeing 747
Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has launched a public row with former Spurs midfielder Rafael van der Vaart.
It comes after Van der Vaart criticized Liverpool and Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk after the Dutch drew their World Cup opener with Japan last week.
Van der Vaart, who played for Spurs between 2010 and 2012, is working for Dutch broadcaster NOS at the World Cup.
Van der Vaart, who played 109 times for the Netherlands, criticized Van Dijk’s late return to Japan and drew comparisons to Boeing’s bulky 747 aircraft.
‘I must honestly say that Van Dijk surprised me a bit. That turn… It looked a bit like a Boeing 747. I hope he runs a little faster during the tournament,’ said Van der Vaart.
However, in the match on German television on Saturday, in which the Netherlands defeated Sweden 5-1 but earned the right to be knocked out, former Liverpool coach Klopp jumped to the defense of his former player Van Dijk and dismissed Van der Vaart’s assessment as unwarranted.
Ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp remains at loggerheads with ex-Spurs midfielder Rafael van der Vaart
Van der Vaart has had his share of controversy working for Dutch broadcaster NOS at the World Cup.
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Van Dijk played for Liverpool under Klopp for six years, winning eight major trophies during their time together and captaining the German in his final season at the club.
“I don’t know if Rafael van der Vaart’s name is worth mentioning,” Klopp said. ‘But if he says something positive about a player, I’m ready to take him seriously again.’
‘You get the sense that he sees something, then it has to be expressed in a flowery way, and then he objects to it. But that’s not that important.’
Van der Vaart’s comments about Van Dijk were not the only incident that sparked controversy during NOS TV’s coverage of the Netherlands’ conflict with Japan.
The 43-year-old player also faced allegations of racism after he said that Japanese players ‘look alike’ while analyzing on air.
Discussing Japan’s last goal in the TV studio after the match, Van der Vaart analyzed Micky van de Ven’s role in defending corners.
‘He’s completely losing it,’ he said. ‘You can see him walking around. If you are the one marking him, then you are responsible for your man. Look, it’s completely unmarked. Van de Ven is nowhere to be seen. He is completely free to take that header.’
He later added, referring to the Japanese players: ‘Of course they all look alike, maybe that’s what he thought.’
Van der Vaart later made a statement after the incident, saying that his intention was ‘never to insult, hurt or discriminate against anyone’.
