Ronald Koeman has come out fighting for Davy Klaassen, with the Dutch midfielder receiving a lot of criticism after a poor start to his Everton career.
Klaassen was a big signing for Everton, cost a lot, and arrived with some fanfare, and therefore the expectations were that he’d have done better than he has already.
Speaking to Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, Koeman has explained it’s a big jump to the Premier League, and those judging Klaassen need to keep that in mind. The period of adjustment can be as long as a season, believes the Dutch coach, and Koeman has compared the situation to that of Henrikh Mkhitaryan at Manchester United.
Jose Mourinho fought hard to sign the Armenian who had been starring for Borussia Dortmund, but his first season, and especially the beginning of it, was quite as good as many would have hoped.
‘There are even bigger players who went to bigger clubs that needed a whole season. The best example is Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who was the best at Borussia Dortmund and was bought by Manchester United for a lot of money. If you saw and heard what criticism he got over his first season, that was unprecedented.
‘Now he is playing at his level and is important to Manchester United every week, but that’s only after one season’s Premier League.’
best in their country and make a transfer because they are really ready for a level higher.‘If they come to England at their summit, it turns out they all need a period to adjust. In terms of pace, aggressiveness and physically, especially as midfielder. Right at that position, it doesn’t matter how skilled you are to then perform at the top level of English football immediately.’
Of course, Klaassen’s struggles, and the related woes of Koeman, are something being covered widely in the Dutch media, so the Everton manager made sure to send a message out in that respect: ‘Outsiders really underestimate the situation. You only see and understand when you work or have worked as a coach or player in such a competition. In addition, Davy is also in the situation that the team is not running well and that we have more players who need some time.’
Klaassen does have more time, probably more than Koeman if things don’t improve quickly at Goodison Park.
