NOS Football••Amended
Merel van Dongen left the Oranje women’s training camp, after she was told on Saturday that she had lost weight for the European Championship. “It was so hard that she did not want to continue in the coming week,” said national coach Andries Jonker. “She couldn’t afford it.”
Jonker announced his final European Championship selection last Saturday. Van Dongen, Shanice van de Sanden, Jill Baijings and fourth keeper Regina van Eijk fell. Van de Sanden, Baijings and Van Eijk will stay with the group this week, in the event that a player is leaved injured. Lisa Doorn (Hoffenheim) replaces Van Dongen on the reserve list.
National coach Jonker about departed European Championships of Dongen: ‘Raised hard’
“I have a lot of respect for her,” Jonker continued Van Dongen. “I gave her reflection time, tried to change her mind, but that didn’t work. She remained to my regret at her point of view. I respect that.”
When the selection leaves for Switzerland next Tuesday, only one spare field player (and no keeper) is allowed. Until the start of the first match, a player may be replaced in the event of a serious injury, determined by the UEFA doctor.
The Dutch national team is preparing this week in Zeist and will play a goodbye game in Leeuwarden against Finland on Thursday. Wales in Luzern is the first European Championships on July 5. Then group duels with England and France are on the program.
In the selection, Jonker prefers the 29-year-old Ilse van der Zanden Boven van Dongen. Van der Zanden played for FC Utrecht for the past two seasons, where she leaves transfer -free this summer with an expiring contract.
‘Ultimately you rate quality’
“They were difficult decisions,” said Jonker about the four dropouts. “They are all players who give everything, all top girls. But my task is to go to the European Championship with the best players.”
On Instagram today Van Dongen responded to missing the European Championship. “My career is not over yet,” wrote the player of the Mexican CF Monterrey. “More about that later. I wish my team the very best at the European Championship and hope to see the country in Oranje.”
In 2017, Van Dongen fell to her great disappointment just before the European Championship outside the group of then national coach Sarina Wiegman. That became extra painful when the Orange women in their own country won the European title. Two years later she played the World Cup final.
Van Dongen played her 63rd and last international match in December 2023. In recent years, despite the lack of playing minutes, she has remained a fixture in the group because of her role as a “driver” outside the field. She also recently indicated that he would never thank for Orange.
Jonker motivated the losing weight of the experienced of Dongen as follows: “Merel has a special input, on the field with her coaching and cleverness and outside the field she also has a big input. Ultimately, you judge quality and the choice did not fall for her.”
Jonker full of confidence for EK: ‘Very fresh company with a lot of quality’
The national coach explained his decisions in individual conversations to the players. About the losing weight of the 32-year-old Van de Sanden, he said: “In my period as a national coach I haven’t seen such a good Shanice yet. She looks fresh and good. But the choice didn’t fall for her.”
Van de Sanden, just like Van Dongen, is also a “driver” for the group in Jonker’s eyes. The choice of the national coach caused disappointment at Van de Sanden. “But she turns the button quickly and wants to help the team.”
