Jordie van der Laan has been sacked by Dutch outfit Telstar after initially claiming to be sick so that he could attend the first leg of the Champions League semi-final clash between Tottenham and Ajax.
The 25-year-old forward took the decision to travel to London against the wishes of his club.
He has paid the price, with the decision taken to mutually terminate a contract that was due to expire at the end of the season.
Van der Laan claims he did come clean before making a trip to the newly-opened Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with television cameras capturing him in the crowd.
He is, however, now on the lookout for a new team.
Explaining his visit to England and subsequent discussions with Telstar, Van der Laan told IJmuider Courant: “Of course I realise that it has been a very awkward situation.
“I had a conversation with Piet [Buter, technical director] last Thursday about the situation and in good harmony it was decided to separate.”
He added: “I called in sick because I was convinced that I would not be freed from the training.
“With this decision I took into account that with Telstar we were no longer playing for anything and I, given the number of playing minutes I have had in the recent period, had only a small chance of figuring against Jong PSV.
“In any case, I definitely would not have gone to London.
“However, I still stated before the Champions League match that I was not sick and was in London.
“So it wasn’t that people from the club were surprised to see me on TV. At that moment they were already informed.
“It is still odd that I was seen on the pictures three times with my big head!”
Van der Laan is now preparing to take in a return meeting between Ajax and Spurs in Amsterdam.
After news of his exit at Telstar broke, he took to social media requesting a ticket to the game as he would be “free after all”.
A Dutch journalist offered to take him along in exchange for a round of beer.
That offer has been accepted by Van der Laan and he will be in attendance once more when Ajax seek to defend a 1-0 first-leg advantage on home soil and book a place in the Champions League final.
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