A stinging critique from De Telegraaf labels Dutch football a declining product, citing PSV’s recent collapse and lackluster European showings as proof of a widening quality gap.
Valentijn Driessen has questioned the overall quality of the Eredivisie after PSV suffered a 3-2 defeat to FC Twente last Sunday, arguing that the standard of Dutch football is declining.
Writing in his column for De Telegraaf, Driessen pointed to the performances of Dutch clubs in European competition as evidence of what he sees as a wider problem.
“You won’t be thrilled about it for the time being,” Driessen wrote. “The confirmation that it is steadily deteriorating in terms of quality, you get when the Dutch clubs take to the European stage.”
Driessen Questions The Depth Of The Eredivisie
Driessen believes the gap between the leading clubs and the rest of the league has become increasingly difficult to ignore.
“Behind AZ, Feyenoord, PSV, FC Twente and Ajax, the ball can roll in all directions,” he wrote.
He acknowledged the achievements of clubs such as Fortuna Sittard and Excelsior, who currently occupy sixth and seventh place, but argued that their positions also highlight the struggles of teams with greater financial resources.
“It is wonderful for Fortuna Sittard and Excelsior that they are sixth and seventh, but at the same time it is an indictment of all the clubs below them with their larger budgets,” Driessen said.
He singled out FC Utrecht’s position as particularly notable, writing that the club sits in “fifteenth(!) place”.
As relayed by PSV Inside, Driessen was equally critical of the quality of individual matches outside the league’s leading fixtures.
“The level regularly hurts the eyes,” he wrote. “Anyone who watches ninety minutes of ADO Den Haag-Cambuur or watches a match involving Sparta or PEC Zwolle or Telstar sometimes deserves a ribbon.”
He also argued that even matches involving the traditional top five do not consistently provide the quality supporters might expect.
“Yet even in AZ-Telstar, Feyenoord-ADO Den Haag, PSV-Fortuna Sittard, FC Twente-Telstar, or Ajax-Heerenveen you aren’t spoiled by the top 5.”
PSV’s Dominance Under Scrutiny
Driessen also cited PSV as an example of the changing balance at the top of the Eredivisie.
The reigning champions suffered their first defeat of the campaign against FC Twente, despite leading 2-1 with around 15 minutes remaining.
According to Driessen, PSV’s dominance of recent seasons has been weakened by several changes to the squad.
“PSV has lost its unbeatable status after the hegemony of the past three years,” he wrote, pointing to the departures of Joey Veerman and Ismael Saibari, Jerdy Schouten’s injury and goalkeeper Matej Kovář.
The 3-2 defeat in Enschede has therefore provided further discussion about PSV’s current level, while Driessen’s broader criticism extends beyond Bosz’s team to the overall standard of the Dutch top flight.
His assessment comes as Dutch clubs continue their European campaigns, where their performances will provide another measure of the Eredivisie’s strength against opposition from across the continent.
