Henk ten Cate defends Memphis Depay, affirms he can still play

Henk ten Cate, the famous former coach of Ajax, expressed his opinion on Memphis Depay's future in the Dutch team. According to him, changing the squad after an unsuccessful tournament is unnecessary. Ten Cate emphasized that the current squad still has many quality players and should not rush to push away names that have been with the team for a long time.

"I don't see any reason to replace players at this point. This squad is still very good," Ten Cate said in an interview. He also emphasized that criticizing experienced players like Memphis is unfair. "Cristiano Ronaldo is not the same as he was 10 years ago, but he is still an important part of the Portugal team. Messi is the same with Argentina. We need to be careful of judging someone too quickly. Tell me who are better players than the ones currently in the Dutch team right now. I still don't see anyone who is a better centre-back than Van Dijk," he added.

Ten Cate also believes that Memphis, who holds the team's scoring record, can still continue to contribute to the Netherlands. "We haven't seen much from Memphis in this tournament, but at 32 years old, he can absolutely continue to play at a high level. However, I also wonder if he can develop more when playing in the Brazilian tournament.

If Memphis returns to the Netherlands to play, maybe he will regain the high form that previously helped the team so much. That might be a good idea for him. He is one of those experienced players who I feel is unfairly underrated. That makes me feel dissatisfied," Ten Cate concluded.

Ten Cate's statements not only show support for Memphis Depay but also reflect the need to maintain stability in the squad, especially in the context of the Dutch team preparing for the next challenges. With the presence of experienced players, the Netherlands hopes to regain form and be more successful in upcoming tournaments.

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