There was not a lot of directness in this specific case though
Coach was asked if he has a plan for player X, and he simply makes an observation about player X. Not 'he is not good', or 'he is bad', just an observation about someone's playing style.
It's nothing more than what goalkeeper Noppert said after the match against USA, when being asked about playing Messi next: "He's great, but for me he's still just a player who's shots I have to stop." There is hardly a world imaginable where that is provocative
Oh well, I guess tiptoeing around everything annoys people here, while getting to the point annoys people in other places, it is what it is and a bit of fuel to the fire of a rivalry (even if only one side sees it as fuel) is never bad in any sport. The end of this match would not have been so tense and full of passion if it was NED against, say, Sweden