‘Regret, shouldn’t have done this’

Steven Berghuis punched a bystander after the FC Twente-Ajax match. The Ajax player lost his composure just before boarding the players’ bus, according to a video circulating on the Internet.

The club management fined Berghuis for his punch. Whether Berghuis hit the fan in question can just not be seen on the video. It is also not yet clear what preceded it and why Berghuis lashed out.

Berghuis has since responded to the incident, however. “I regret my action, I shouldn’t have done this. After every away game we get a lot of curses thrown at us at the bus, while we make time to hand out autographs to fans who ask for them.”

“I’m used to a bit by now but people think they can just shout anything. My reaction doesn’t solve anything, I understand that too. It’s not right, I have an example function as a player of Ajax.”

According to Twente regional newspaper Tubantia, Berghuis allegedly reacted to a racist remark made toward teammate Brian Brobbey. Brobbey was allegedly called out for “cancer black”. The newspaper relies on an anonymous witness whose name is known to the editor.

Ajax disapproves of Berghuis’ reaction and fined him. “Steven reacted in the wrong way. He quickly made that known to John Heitinga and immediately apologized. Upon arrival at the Arena, he had a conversation with Heitinga, Edwin van der Sar and Sven Mislintat. They also wanted to hear his side of the story. The conclusion is that his reaction was wrong and that Ajax disapproves.”

Ajax lost 3-1 at FC Twente and will go into the Europa League next year. Berghuis substituted in the second half of the match.

Brian Brobbey expressed his support for Berghuis on Sunday night with a photo on his Instagram account. The Ajax player posted a photo of him together with Berghuis, accompanied by a heart and and Berghuis’ name. He did not include any other text.