Liverpool hero Dirk Kuyt confronted by angry fans with police forced to intervene
Dirk Kuyt has struggled to turn ADO Den Haag's fortunes around after taking charge of the club back in June and supporters have voiced their concern with their start to the season
It hasn't been the greatest start to Dirk Kuyt 's time in charge of Ado Den Haag so far, after police were forced to intervene a fan protest at the club's training ground.
After enduring coaching roles with Quick Boys and Feyenoord, the 42-year-old took up his managerial role with the Dutch side back in June. Kuyt, who penned a one-year deal, was tasked with settling the club's fortunes after a torturous period which involved a spell with Alan Pardew in charge.
ADO have ambitions of promotion back to the Eredivisie, but it is safe to say the former Liverpool hero is struggling to live up to those expectations. They have won just one of their first six matches, picking up just four points from a possible 18, with ADO's only victory coming in a 4-0 rout over Jong Ajax.
Following ADO's 2-2 draw with AZ Alkmaar Under 23s on Friday, a meeting with Kuyt took place at the club's training ground and supporters aired their grievances with him. According to AD, police were called to attend but the situation "proceeded calmly" after Kuyt agreed to talk to fans, before the session went ahead as planned.
Edwin Reijntjes, the club’s general manager, accepted that "supporters want to make a statement," and although he denied that Kuyt was under pressure, he admitted: "Dirk knows that, if it takes too long in football, there can be consequences."
"I’m still confident it’ll be OK," Reijntjes continued. "If we beat Jong FC Utrecht [on Monday] and PEC Zwolle [on Friday], the world can immediately look very different."
It is not the first time ADO have seen their fans confront a manager at their training ground, with a protest during a session led by Pardew back in February 2020 making headlines. Den Haag sat 17th in the Eredivisie at the time and have since been relegated into the second tier of Dutch football.
In the meantime, Kuyt has also been speaking about Liverpool's fortunes and believes it will only be a matter of time before Jurgen Klopp gets it right. "I am confident that Klopp will get Liverpool back on track," Kuyt told Mirror Football.
"He is still searching for the right mechanism in midfield and in attack. That doesn't surprise me after the departure of Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich and the arrival of Benfica striker Darwin Nunez. They are two completely different types of striker.
"If the club is having a bad time, like this period, the crowd often creates an atmosphere of invincibility. I would be very surprised if Ajax can play well against Liverpool under that intense pressure."
