says during an interview with Football International about the past season, in which his father was also often the subject of conversation. Maurice Steijn was sent away from Ajax in October after many bad results.
Sem has proven to be a revelation at FC Twente (especially in the first half of the season). In the competition, the attacking midfielder currently has fourteen goals and two assists. Yet it has not always been easy to be the ‘son of’ in the past, the talent says. “When I was a youth at ADO, people quickly looked at me with envy. When I meet people from the past, they admit it: “I always thought you were only allowed to play football at ADO because your father was there.” Now they are proud of me, which I think is nice. I have turned the disadvantage of my surname into an advantage: I will show what I can do myself.”
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The FC Twente midfielder had to watch with sorrow as father Maurice temporarily ended up in last place in the Eredivisie with Ajax and was sent away not much later. “Phew, I’m glad that period is over. My father and I are very close, but I saw him very little during those months. He hasn’t been to one of my games. Furthermore, it was not a fun period for anyone. It was also difficult for me: you cannot escape Ajax. He was everywhere. There was no escape; when I turned on the TV it was about him.”
Sem was relieved when he no longer had to hear constant criticism of his father when Maurice was ‘put out of his misery’ in October. “Certainly, especially because he no longer had confidence in it himself. If you see how things have gone for Ajax this season, that moment would have come sooner or later. Then it better happen quickly. It wasn’t my father’s fault, that became clear afterwards. I know how everything went, I know he did everything he could. Fortunately, he is doing very well again now. My father just didn’t click with one person, it’s clear who that was. He worked well with the other people there.”
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