Leroy Fer has stated that during his time at Swansea, the younger players were expected to keep their mouth shut.

Fer, now playing for Feyenoord, described the difference between Dutch football and the English game, and has expressed how it's better for younger players to be part of the group in the Netherlands.

The 29-year-old played for the Swans from 2016 to 2019 and was a key player for the club in their bid to stay in the Premier League. He's now plying his trade at Feyenoord playing under former Reading boss Jaap Stam.

Fer has insisted that playing in the Netherlands is much better for younger players and that he tried to change things during his time in Wales.

Speaking to fr-fans.nl, Fer said: "Here the young boys are just part of the group. I find that much better myself. I think this has changed throughout Dutch football.

"In the UK, the hierarchy is somewhat stricter. When Swansea boys from the second team were training, they were expected to keep their mouth shut.

"I tried to change that from time to time as a leader, by putting an arm around those boys and showing that they were one of us. But you get a strange look. ‘He’s from the second, cut it down’, teammates then said to me.”

The Verdict

It's quite an interesting story actually, and we all know how many good young Dutch players have gone on to have brilliant careers.

Maybe this is something that more clubs can take advice from in the UK, and make it a more together environment that could help the youth grow whilst boosting morale around the squad.

Teams such as Ajax have been well known for a number of years for producing some of the world's best players and they're still doing that so there is a lot that the English leagues could learn from football in the Netherlands.

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