Former Tottenham Hotspur player’s international career 'over' after move to Saudi Pro League

This summer has been somewhat quieter in terms of big names moving to the Saudi Pro League, but several have still made the switch from the European leagues - and for ex-Tottenham player Steven Bergwijn, it means a big hit to his international career.

Bergwijn, 26, completed a transfer from Ajax to Al-Ittihad on Monday to join a side including Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kanté. He arrived at the Dutch club only two years ago but is already on the move - and his international manager Ronald Koeman is not impressed.

Koeman, who himself made 78 appearances for the Oranje, said it’s clear the move “has nothing to do with (sporting) ambition.”

“Not everyone thinks, fortunately, the same way. I think when you are 26 the main ambition should be sporting and not financial, but those are choices players make."

He added that the “book is closed” in terms of Bergwijn’s appearances for the Dutch team, saying: “I think he knows how I think about this." Bergwijn was not named in Koeman’s squad for their upcoming Nations League fixtures, which was announced on Friday, despite making two appearances at this summer’s European Championships.

Bergwijn signed for Spurs from PSV in 2022 for £26.7m, and played 60 times - scoring seven goals - before a 2022 transfer to Ajax. The deal in which he returned to Holland was for roughly the same price, and was the highest fee ever commanded for player arriving in the Eredivisie.

England international Ivan Toney has opted to leave the Premier League behind in favour of a move to Al-Ahli at age 28, and it’s not yet clear what this will mean for his international career.

Toney was not named in new interim head Lee Carsley’s squad for September’s fixtures, but this is thought to be because of his lack of minutes for Brentford at the start of the season amid transfer speculation. Few active England internationals have taken the gamble of moving to the Saudi Pro League, with Jordan Henderson being the prime example; after moving to Al-Ettifaq in 2023, he was booed in England’s game against Australia a few months later.

The former Liverpool star ended up cutting a deal to leave Saudi in January 2024 and was left out of Gareth Southgate’s squad for the Euros.

That doesn’t bode well for Toney’s chances of adding to his six senior caps for England - though it’s worth noting that he is six years Henderson’s junior and some other players have managed to maintain an international career alongside a club career in Saudi. Cristiano Ronaldo and N’Golo Kanté both appeared for their countries at this summer’s tournament, though the former came in for plenty of criticism for his performances; Toney’s fate still hangs in the balance.