‘This makes me very sad’

Rafael van der Vaart thinks that Ajax supporters have acted disrespectfully by whistling Edwin van der Sar en masse. Prior to the duel with FC Utrecht, Van der Sar entered the field to say goodbye to Maarten Stekelenburg and Michael Reiziger, after which the fans turned against him.

“This makes me very sad”, Van der Vaart responded on Sunday evening Studio Football. “We all know that’s how it works in football, but this man has meant so much as a player. Apparently the credit is up to the front door and then it’s done. This is painful to see… The great Van der Sar, we know It’s all of them, they only want the best for Ajax.”

“If he speaks nice words for Stekelenburg and Reiziger, they can’t bring themselves to keep their mouths shut for a while. I actually thought this was so disrespectful to everyone, a pity”, the former midfielder concluded.

John Heitinga also thinks that Van der Sar deserves more respect, the trainer said at the press conference after the game. “It is an icon. Edwin also does a lot of things very well. It is a difficult year, so also for Edwin. For all of us. The most important thing is that the boys we say goodbye to, one of whom stops playing football and the other made a great contribution, Michael Traveler, be honored.”