FOOTBALL : The Dutch football association claim they kept Arsenal fully informed about Robin van Persie’s ankle injury after Gunners boss Arsene Wenger accused them of “minimising” the seriousness of the problem.
The Dutch football association claim they kept Arsenal fully informed about Robin van Persie’s ankle injury after Gunners boss Arsene Wenger accused them of “minimising” the seriousness of the problem.
Van Persie suffered ruptured ankle ligaments during Holland’s friendly against Italy on November 14, and – after treatment involving placenta failed to improve the problem – it has now emerged that he requires surgery and faces up to five months on the sidelines and Wenger claimed the injury was “much worse” than the Dutch football association (KNVB) had initially told them.
But the KNVB have issued a statement saying: “Directly after Robin van Persie got injured in the friendly of the Dutch national team versus Italy, the doctor of the Netherlands team diagnosed an ankle ligament problem. The (KNVB) medical staff contacted Arsenal the same Sunday. The scan was also handed over to the medical staff of Arsenal.”
The statement continued: “The Arsenal striker went to the hospital in Amsterdam on Sunday, where further examination (MRI scan) confirmed the diagnosis of the medical staff of the Netherlands team – Robin van Persie had a ruptured ligament of his right ankle.
“The medical staff of the KNVB contacted Arsenal club doctor Gary O’Driscoll to inform him about the outcome of the investigation and to transfer the medical record regarding this injury.
Quoted in several of Sunday morning’s national newspapers, Wenger said: “I think the Dutch FA minimised the injury.
“We have just found out that it is much worse than what they told us.
“If a player gets injured with his country he should be sent back to his club straight away to be checked out by their doctors, not by those of the national team.
“Countries just take your player away for a friendly and then give him back and say: ‘There you go’. It doesn’t happen in any other sport. It’s a joke and is so disrespectful.”
