VAN DER LINDEN QUITS SWINDON

The former Sparta Rotterdam defender was replaced after half an hour during Town's 4-1 defeat at Stoke City and words were exchanged between the pair at half-time.

King was furious that Van Der Linden had refused to commit himself to the club, but the player felt he had been humiliated in front of his team-mates.

Van Der Linden returned to Holland on Sunday and he insisted that he had layed his last game for the Wiltshire club. "I have played my last game for Swindon Town," Van Der Linden told the Swindon Evening Advertiser

"I wanted to stay but for some reason the manager and I were not getting on. "I'm just unhappy that I did not have chance to say goodbye to the fans properly," added Van Der Linden.

King hit back at Van Der Linden claiming that the player was not worthy of making demands to the club.

"When you give me ultimatums you better be good enough to back them up," said King. "These players are not good enough to make demands."