Feyenoord midfielder Quinten Timber has launched a blistering public attack on manager Robin van Persie, accusing the former striker of failing to protect his players and lacking the courage to address performance concerns face-to-face.
The internal stability of Feyenoord has reached a breaking point following a public war of words between manager Robin van Persie and star midfielder Quinten Timber in the wake of a disappointing 4-3 defeat to Sparta Rotterdam.
The conflict ignited after Van Persie justified benching the Dutch international by citing a lack of effort, explaining to reporters, “I look at the training sessions, the matches, and how the players fulfil their roles.
Especially their intentions. I think there’s plenty of room to improve on certain points. I want to see an intention in defence and attack to perform your duties well.”
Timber, whose brother Jurrien plays for Arsenal, reacted with visible fury to the public critique, asserting that the manager’s comments had crossed a line and damaged the trust within the squad.
“I think it’s a shame what the coach said, that it happened this way. It’s happened a few times now that the coach doesn’t protect the player,” Timber fumed, before directly challenging the 41-year-old manager by adding, “You can have an opinion, but say it to my face. This was the limit.”
The midfielder further described the situation as a “charade” and defended his work rate, noting that he would play any position for the team while emphasizing his desire to leave the club on professional terms despite a strained relationship with the supporters.
Unmoved by the player’s outburst, Van Persie remained firm in his assessment during post-match briefings, reiterating that his selections are based strictly on what he observes on the training ground.
“If I see that you don’t have the intention to carry out those duties, I assess that based on the training sessions and matches, then I make choices based on players who do have that intention,” the manager stated, concluding that he was simply “not satisfied with that with Quinten,” as the club now faces a massive 16-point deficit behind Eredivisie leaders PSV.