Pro ShotsYouth players train at AZ
NOS Football•yesterday, 14:24•Modified yesterday, 18:43
AZ has responded extensively for the first time to the accusations made by former youth player Finn Berk in his book ‘Voetbaldroom’ about the Alkmaar youth academy. According to AZ, some of the incidents did not happen, according to research that the Eredivisie club conducted into the allegations.
One of the incidents was with a physiotherapist of the club. A fellow player of AZ O-14 had to stand naked in front of the therapist by the trainer, Berk writes in the much-discussed book.
‘Never happened’
AZ contacted those involved in the incident described, including teammates at the time, the physiotherapist and the trainer. “They all stated that they were not aware of the incident and some indicated that they were certain that it never happened,” can be read in a statement.
Furthermore, according to the research, there is no evidence for the negative image of the youth academy, as outlined in the book. “We are pleased that many players have indicated that they had a good time at the club. Many have explicitly distanced themselves from the accusations in the book. We emphasize that we have never heard these accusations before or other incidents described in the book.”
Pro ShotsYouth players train at AZ
Following the investigation, AZ wrote to the book’s publisher. The publisher then posted a correction on their website about the passage with the physiotherapist and apologized for the lack of a hearing.
In a possible next printing the passage about the physiotherapist incident will be removed, reports NH News.
Publisher’s response
“Because the shower incident was threatening to overshadow the much more important and larger story of the book, we decided to remove it from the reprint. It is not a key scene in the book.
Voetbaldroom is about how Finn Berk experienced insecurity in the world of football, in his training and also when he later became a professional. From the reactions Finn receives, we notice that he is absolutely not the only one. He is inundated with expressions of support from all over the Netherlands. Finn still fully supports his story and his goal that attention is paid to a responsible pedagogical policy for children in youth football training.”
