A third term for Louis van Gaal

Euro 2020 Euro 2021
by Jan

It’s official. We knew this was going to happen for weeks of course, but in typical Louis style, he took the reins of this negotiations period and stamped his authority on the matter.

He wanted the KNVB management to come to him (in Portugal) and he needed a lot of conditions signed off. His team of people, of course. Rumour has it, that should he qualify for Qatar, he’ll have a staff larger than the squad, to give you one example. But another cause of delay was the whole financial situation.

You see, Louis has gathered around 25Mio euros on his account, from all his activities as a coach. And as he lives in Portugal, officially, he is seen as a foreigner for tax purposes. Once he starts to work in Holland, for a Dutch organisation, the Dutch tax department slaps him with a bill for wealth-tax. And that could well be a bill that goes into the millions. So they needed to find a solution for this.

In the deliberations with the Dutch tax office, it was established that if Louis can cap his working days in Holland under a certain number of days (I believe it’s 80 days), this rule will not apply.

Some serious calculations resulted in good news: with all the work he needs to do for Oranje in other countries (away games in Norway, etc) and with the option to use a country like Portugal or Austria as a base for pre-tournament training camps, it will be possible for Louis to limit his days actually working/being in Holland. Pfff….

With that out of the way, Louis presented his dream team: no more place for Dwight Lodeweges (who signed as assistant coach at PEC Zwolle) and Pat Lodewijks. In come Danny Blind (Louis’ longstanding right hand man), Frans Hoek (the trusted keeper trainer) and … Henk Fraser, the current Sparta coach. The players have stressed that they preferred to have one coach on the staff who shared the cultural background of the coloured lads. Ruud Gullit was an option, Seedorf was mentioned, and many other names came by, but for good reason, the KNVB picked Henk Fraser.

Gullit and Seedorf probably didn’t want to play third fiddle anyway.

Either way, Fraser should be considered the first assistant, despite what the media tell you. Danny Blind is not so much a field trainer, Danny is simply the best analyst and scout Louis has and they have trusted relationship. A bit like Dick Advocaat and Cor Pot. There is a trust relationship, they only need half a glance. Danny and Louis go back all the way to the 1980s when they played together at Sparta.

Henk Fraser also started at Sparta and had a short spell with both Van Gaal and Blind. He was a striker, originally, but at FC Utrecht they transformed him into a defender. He reached his peak at Feyenoord where he won the title alongside John de Wolf, now assistant coach at Feyenoord.

Fraser became a sought after coach. Initially as youth coach at Feyenoord and PSV. Players like Memphis and Wijnaldum worked with him there. He would have his successes at ADO Den Haag and Vitesse, where he won the only prize Vitesse ever won: the National Cup. People expected him to move to Feyenoord as a coach, but he decided on Sparta. His first club, where one of his close friends is currently technical director, Henk van Stee.

Fraser is indeed considered to be one of the best coaches working in Holland at the moment. Very balanced guy, excellent communicator, disciplined and tough when need be and a fan of attacking and attractive, technical football.

You won’t be surprised if the KNVB has decided that should we qualify for the World Cup AND if we do ok (whatever that is), Henk will be the successor to Louis van Gaal and will be NT manager post the World Cup. I think it’s an excellent choice. Initially, Henk will combine his assistant role with his role as Sparta Head Coach.

The courting of Van Gaal resulted in some spicy news items. There is this rumour that when Koeman left Oranje, the players pleaded with the KNVB not to hire Van Gaal. The rumour has it that Virgil van Dijk, Memphis and Wijnaldum in particular didn’t want to work with him. Van Dijk has slammed an English reporter recently, who brought this item to the fore again, with a fierce “shame on you!” message on Insta.

Memphis is usually not so diplomatic. The Barca forward worked with Van Gaal at the 2014 World Cup and was signed by Louis for Man United as well. The former PSV star: “I see this as a positive step. I worked with him at Man United as he signed me on my 20st. He also took me in with Oranje for the World Cup. I have had amazing moments with him and learned a lot. When I went to Man United, I entered a new phase in my career and I had good and less good experiences with him, but that was also me, I was young and still had to learn a lot. Overall, I’m positive. I know he will have a positive impact on the squad and he can build a successful team, I’m convinced of that. This is what we need.”

Marco van Basten: “If you want to get a guy in who will get the best results, he’s probably the best option. He has proven that he can do that. The way he does it, his methods, you can question but he is an allround coach and maybe the disciplinarian that the group needs now.”

Rafa van der Vaart doesn’t think his age and the fact he was retired already are a problem. “That is not an issue, I don’t think. His age as well, he probably has many more good years in him. He is simply the best we have. The football in 2014 might not have been the best, but he does make something happen. His staff is also quite active still, with Fraser and Danny Blind, so they’ll be in good hands.”

Ex Ajax coach Aad de Mos: “It’s a law in football. After a relaxed coach, squads need a more disciplined coach. From democracy to authoritarian and then it’s logical you end up with Louis. He is a very strong tactician. No one can do what he can, in terms of analysing what he needs for a successful tournament. I saw his presentation to the KNVB back in 2014, where he predicted literally everything that would happen. That was powerful. You need international experience, having played European matches and understand the international football trends. He ticks all the boxes.

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99 comments

  1. As I said before, Louis appointment went very quietly in the media and that is very unusual. Hope this is a good sign. Out of all five episodes, my favorite one was the number 4 (second episode in the second video) LOLOLOLOLOLOL. In general, LvG likes to give analogies with sexual content. I remember there was another funny interview with LvG when he was a coach of MU. During that press-conferences, he said “I urge my players to be horny, and they will play aggressively if they are horny”. I think that was super hilarious. I like Henk Frazer and I agree with Jan’s assessment of his personality. It looks like he understands well people psychology and can develop really good teams. I do not know how he can handle strong personalities though. Very interesting photo of Memphis, he really looks like the imam from our local mosque. At first I thought that was him….

  2. I am happy to see LVG back…Best thing happned for NT in 2021….Cannot wait to see very soon fleet footed ones will be booted out..dumfries,Winjdal,De roon,Luuk,Weghorst..anf he will bench Rainbow man Gini wijnaldum..

  4. “The players have stressed that they preferred to have one coach on the staff who shared the cultural background of the coloured lads.” Is this for real? Geez. Do they really feel the white players have a a “different” culture? I can’t believe they look at skin color to identify with a “culture”. So if there an asian guy in the team we would need an asian staff member to deal with his “background”? I thought America was alone in this insanity but it seems like the disease has spread.

    1. I think it’s understandable. There is a large contingent of people in the Netherlands from Indonesia (East Indies) and the West Indies. They do feel and eat and live a bit differently I think. Music tastes, pace, religion, food, there are differences and since the mid 90s the players with roots from those countries do feel more comfortable with at least one person in the staff who relates to them. We had Kluivert in that role before, and Rijkaard under Hiddink. I don’t think it is weird whatsoever. I do get your point re: Asian players but it’s not moot point as we don’t have any ;-).

  6. Imo KNVB are just trying wipe their own shit in desperation and that’s why they have bowed down to LVG and his demands. they knew they had to clean the mess up after appointing FDB and euro failure and there was no other way to do this except appointing LVG. Remember after FDB’s appointment the whole Soccer fraternity was mourning and to prevent further embarrassment and finger pointing, the appointment of LVG would be a perfect way out and swipe the euro failure under the carpet. no big foreign coach would have taken up the job in the wake of the current status of the team.

    its obvious everybody will look up to Van Gaal with his track record but his failures are not any surprise either. it has to be accounted for and given the situation this time around its gonna be more pressure on him than ever. even more than 2014 where the last of the golden generation were on hand to cushion the the team.

    it is more or less a hype that Van Gaal is the right man but the odds are against him as any and only time will tell whether this was just another bad move by KNVB like to that of FDB appointment.

    1. I agree with Wilson. Particularly, that no foreign coach would have taken current Oranje. Too much pressure for less money and big risk to destroy the reputation. I think highly of LVG but would not be surprised if he fails too.

  7. I’m excited about all these Dutch players going to Nice. I’m going to be in Nice for their league opener, so I’m thinking of going to watch the game. I’m actually flying out or Amsterdam on the day of the Cruyff schaal, so I’ll have to miss that event.

  8. I think 2002 LVG was little unlucky to concede a late goal from. Portugal who eliminated Germany and england in euro 2000 and finanist of euro 2004…ireland was magnificent team with macateer, roby keane and roy keane.. Even Portugal could not beat them.. Just one goal would have gotten us to play off… So hard luck… Again in 2014 he didn’t loose any game.. He threw away turkey at qualification and took revenged spain.. He could not feild krul for shootout.. So he lost penalty lottery… He inherited a team humiliated by 2012 euro… Was a declining team.. LVG will bring us back to the contender level… Just wait and see… I am challenging here..

  11. Players that are having a good pre season.

    Xavi Simons- this could be his break through season at PSG. Remains to be seen though when all the big guns return to the starting line up and whether Pocettinho gives him the benefit of doubt based on his pre season form.if not, should go out on loan atleast to club playing in europa. Rennes, Lyon etc

    Marco Van Ginkel- dont wanna jinx. But he finally looks set to be getting back to his best. Was instrumental in both legs vs Galatasaray and with more games, he surely will get more sharper and if he can remain injury free, no doubt he will be able to make a comeback in NT.

    Mitchell Bakker- has kick started at Leverkusen from where he left of at PSG. Scored in the Utrecht loss ( friendly). Needs to keep improving though whike on the other hand has defintely dethrone Sinkgraven off as the first choice LB . In the last two friendly sinkgraven came of the bench but played in the midfield. Sinkgraven needs to be carefully as well, other wise he will find himself out of favour at Leverkusen. At first glance he looks like a 16 year kid who has been starving for a long time. This guy seriously needs to hit the gym. Never really clicked in the midfield and kept losing balls in duals.now I get why Bosz coverted him to LB. He just lacks that technical ability of a midfielder. Might have to settle for backup now.

    Ki Jana Hoever- was really suprised when Liverpool sold him to the Wolves. Last season was on and off playing in the shadows of semado but he finally his pushing for that starting spot with his pre season form. Has been on the score sheet as well.

  13. watched the replay of Feyenoord and Drita. would say feyenoord were extremely lucky to come out winners as Drita didnt capitalize on Feyenoord’s defensive weakness. I have said this before , Til is a very underrated and technical player even with very limited skill set. its good to see him back in the spot light again. kudos to Slot for signing him. I still think feyenoord should do some more major signing especially in the backline and a profilic striker. Gernot Trauner has been a surprise signing for them but it still leaves them with shortage of experienced defenders at the back.

    My eye was also on Malacia and I must say his defensive game is worrying. he has what it takes to be attacking fullback but defensively he has fades away. maybe to do with is physic.

  14. AZ deal with Monaco over Boadu was called off due issues with Raiola’s commission. Apparently, he was asking for more than 10%. Greedy bastard.

  15. Today Dutch women team was eliminated by the half men of the US in the Olympics. They went out with a wimp. Everybody was expecting Dutch to go through after scoring a ton of goals in group stage. If they couldn’t beat the US this time they never will. Weak and fragile they’re no much to the physical “american” freaks. Sad Olympics with empty stands, should have either been postponed or taken place with limited fans.

    1. The lead up talk didn’t give me the impression that the Dutch were expected to win; seemed to me the question was which US team would show up. As it turned out, a very good one. The Dutch Women gave a good account of themselves. The U.S was the better team in the first half, and the Dutch were fortunate not to trail by more than 2-1. The Netherlands was the better team in the second half. Tied it up, missed a PK which likely would have won it with about 10 minutes left, and had several other close calls. Went out on penalties. Good game, tough loss, could have gone either way.

      1. andrew, I followed this team very closely during the 2019 WC. They were excellent back then. This time around I have not had a chance to watch any games live but judging by group scores and media comments it seemed like they were the main contenders for the trophy by a mile. I only caught the extra time play and indeed the US could have won it , they had a couple of offside goals one of which seemed too close to call. Defense was slow and with plenty of holes. Even Zambia scored 3 against them and honestly suffering 8 goals in the group stage should have given me a reason to be more realistic. To me even though they scored a ton goals they have regressed compared to the WC. Not sure why Wiegman didn’t have a stronger defense. They badly missed Spitse.
        Here’s hoping Sweden goes all the way.

    2. Can you just try and keep it to football??
      -Half-men
      -American freaks
      -Rainbow-wearing Wijnaldum
      -Calling BS on black players feeling culturally different than white players

      It’s super annoying that you keep throwing this stuff in your comments. It’s just unnecessary and it seems pretty dickish, honestly. I keep reading this little digs and just ignoring them, but since you’ve felt the need to make them towards both black players and women in just your last couple comments, I thought I should actually say something. If it’s not your culture, not your gender, not your way of living, just keep it to yourself— or maybe spend some time trying to understand these things from someone else’s perspective.

      In case you’re wondering, I’m a straight white male, so it’s not about me and I’m not some kind of culture warrior. I just don’t like this kind of stuff in general and it taints the conversation on this blog.

  16. @Balkan, I remember you writing alot about the WC. I followed it, too. It was fun tournament run. They played several tough knockout round games, and looked tighter, more cohesive defensively in that tournament. I understand your point about them looking like favorites here because of all the goals they scored in the group play, but the defenses of two of their opponents (China and Zambia) were in shambles from the start; you couldn’t take anything from those games. The goals scored against the NT were the result of games that fell apart because the Dutch were so far ahead so quickly. (Plus Zambia had one really good forward.) Everything was wide open.

    I actually thought the NT played much better against the US here than in the WC. If I remember that game correctly, they seemed hemmed in all game, and barely got a look in offensively the entire game. When the US went ahead in the WC Final, it felt over. The US is still a very good team. Last night, though, rather than bunkering in, they came out to play. Went ahead early. Fell behind, tied it, and for most of the second half the Dutch were marginally the better team. (The US did have offside goals called back, but they were all legitimate calls.) The Dutch should have won; Maartens had a PK late, and could have done better with it. I’m with you on Sweden.

  17. Sandler continues to impress in the preseason. This time came of the bench and started on the right.

    https://www.si.com/soccer/manchestercity/match-coverage/player-ratings-man-city-4-0-barnsley-pre-season.

    Will say he looks more composed then Ake or even Dias for that matter and given he can play both on the right and left plus in the Midfield,he could rival all the City CBs for Starting spot.

    Community shield is coming up next for City. will be interesting to see who gets the nod.

  18. Aston Villa have signed Leon Bailey from Leverkusen and this will most probably mark the end of Anwar El Ghazi at villa. He is likely to be sold and Roma had a concrete interest in him. If I’m not wrong then jorge mendez is his agent and is likely to pull the strings with notable clubs.

    I have been following him from last two seasons and his problem area has been his consistency. But I suppose this was a high expectation from the management given, Grealish is the only forward that has been consistent for villa than any one else. Maybe this is part of Dean Smith’s plan to enhance the team’s attacking power and contesting for Better standings In the league.

  19. Bizot was sold to Brest (French league). Not sure why we left for Brest: lower middle club in League 1 and no European games….He was sold for 5 MM euro….Except salary, poor decision IMO.

  20. Boadu’s move to Monaco has been finalized. He is the fourth player from the main selection that have departed AZ this summer in addition to Stengs, Bizot, and Svenson.

  21. Is there anyone here that still follows ihattaren situation? Anyone can explain what this is all about and why his coach hates him so much ?

    So what is next for him , is ihattaren moving to another club ?

    2. Ihattaren isn’t good enough according to Schmid. He feels Manueke is better. Works harder for the team, has more impact. Mo is a big talent but he’ll need to start show it. His conduct is that of a spoiled 16 year old.

  22. Ian Maatsen loaned to Coventry city. A player who needs to be looked at by the New coach of Netherlands.He seems to be developing into a good left back last season.

    1. Still too young. His development is going good though. League 1 last season, championship this season and should keep moving up from there. Maybe JO first.

  24. Any interview given by LVG? Interested to know what he got to say about the NT and players, incl. the dismal showing at Euros. His appointment is such a muted affair.
    I am optimistic about his appointment; many young players could be given their opportunity and could well be their break-out year, just in time for WC next year (provided we qualify). Nations League also be interesting to see how LVG builds the team.

  26. Feyenoord propose player swab deal with heerenveen to sign veerman. Players include, linssen,Bannis,Vente or Bozenik.

    Jairo Riedewald is another dutch player who is having a good pre season. He really went under the radar last season but it was actually his break out season at palace after sitting for one whole seadon on the bench. things are looking good for him under new coach patrick Vieira. He needs to looked at imo for NT. He is a very underrated player but hardworking player as well.

  29. I agree with Wilson. I have not seen such a powerful PSV for at least past 5 years. It looks like Schmidt was able to streamline all processes within the team. Sometimes even very talented player can be extremely toxic for the team and the hard decision should be made. I think that is the case with Ihattaren.

    1. The think that strikes me most about them is their bench which is equally good as well. I have long said this, a good depth is a formula for sucess and thats whats in store for PSV.

      For Ihatraren I hope he learns from his mistake.

  30. This is a better side then the one that reached the quarters of CL few seasons back.I do think they need a back up striker after the departure of piroe.

  34. PSV looking more organised in play and enough quality in their ranks. Likely that they will go far this time around if they continue to get better and more organised.

  36. Frenkie de Jong injured says reports. The extent of the Injury is unknown but this will provide an opportunity for coach Van-gaal to bring in new players in mid-field for the qualifiers. Its is turning out like what @wilson has been saying.

  37. Manoj Kumar unfortunately it wont be new players but sonny boy who will get the nod, and with the ajax connection, it will be the the same Ajax contingent as present day.

    this is the perfect opportunity to call up veerman or give koopmeiners the big break. Schouten is also there and as well as Riedeweld. try point backwrads.

  38. sam Lammers to Geona is the finalizing stage and a deal has struck between Atalanta and Genoa. this is a good news for him given his last season didnt yield much playing minutes.. my projection for 2024-2026, he is an important piece.

  39. Til with another two goals for feyenoord. this is what I having been saying throughout about the dutch flops returning to eredivsie and then lightinh it up again similary to klaassen and berghuis. on another note Till is still young and the move to feyenoord could help get his career get back on track compared to others.

  40. I am hoping for LVG to re-jig the NT. Honestly, we have never settled down on a formation, structure and starting lineup. Curious to see how LVG looks at the NT and who he will call up and drop for Sept qualifiers which are do-or die.

  43. Wow Ajax – PSV 0:4! This is very strong message from PSV. Hopefully, they will carry this form longer. PSV tend to start very brightly then they deflate in the course of the season.

  45. Watched the replay(whole game) and think madeuke just did the damage with his very early goal and then the second one around the 25′. Ajax really dominated the midfield while PSV were more adventurous on over the head balls.

    Ajax played the tpyical way they play, blind with his typical over the head balls but must say PSV defense never let their guard down.
    Even after the red card, Ajax pressed forward but then defensively they were stretched.late two goals seal the deal.

    My eye was full time on marco van Ginkel especially up against Gravenberch and Blind and Klaassen. Had his moments but overall he is not 100%. Gravenberch bossed the midfield to some extent but like I said PSV found alot of break through from over the head balls and thats where Ajax looked vunlerable especially with Blind caught up going forward. Madueke’s first two goals came as a result from that.After the Tagliafico’s red card it all became tatical with subs coming on and off.

    Lastly Berghuis. I have long said this he is not a big game players and thats exactly what happened. Had few good crosses (trade mark) from the flanks which was dealt with accordingly by PSV defense.apart from that took the corners twice or thrice and was later subbed. Couldnt go outside of marker and for long periods was a pedestrian. When Antony returns, he will have to play second fiddle to him.

  46. Was a bad day in office for Ake in community shield. Everything was going smoothly but concended a late penalty in the dying minutes of the game. Was latching onto a back pass, shielding when he slipped and with face to the ground, his legs got tangled into Kelechi Iheanacho leg.when the camera angled changed, pep was with his trade mark hands on his head posture.

  47. Malen also made his debut for Dortmund in DFB pokal coming of the bench in SF. Haaland stole the show though with a hat trick.

    It was also the same story for Brobbery at RBLeipzig.

  48. Ajax-Psv game was a good one lots of talents on feild…Score might be 4-0 but thats not saying anything on game…Ajax was technically superior and beauty to watch..PSV got an early goal and showed composure indefense and tactics..Ajax must work on menatlity…i was behind Gravenberch and Vanginkel and Propper..Propper came in as sub..Gravenberch was like king…Freaking talent…When you play with midfeild Gravenberch-Bazeoer-Frenkie is far more superior to Frenkie-Gini-klassen…thats what we need in NT..Blind was excellent in building from back but he is vulnerable spot in ajax team..Blind should move away from LCB or LB for Jetro williams,Malacia,Virgil and Botman,Ake…Blind should play hifgher upfront..would be great in there…Hope LVG finds a way for it…
    Timber,Rensch,Gravenberch Ajax is grooming another golden generation…

  50. I heard LVG wants to stick with 532…then who all will make it???
    if its 532 then i feel Boadu and Depay is the best..Since we have good Cbs in Virgil,Deligt,Devrij,Ake,botman,Shuurs its is not needed….
    —–Danjuma———Boadu———-
    ———–Depay——————-
    Blind—Frenkie–Bazoer—-Rensch
    ——Virgil—Devrij-Deligt—-
    ———–Bijlow———————–
    =============================================
    ——Gakpo———Malen———–
    ————Stengs—————-
    Malacia—Koopmeiners—Gravenberch—karsdorp
    ——-Botman—–Ake——Timber——–
    ————–Cillessen———————-

  51. So I happened to be at the Johan Cruijff Schaal yesterday, much to my regret. I had a few takeaways.

    Noni Madueke looks like he’s ready to be the best player in the Eredivisie by leaps and bounds. Hopefully PSV can hold onto him all season because he looks like the type of player that could single handedly carry them to a European run, not that he doesn’t have great support. PSV immediately looking like title favorites, and if you’re a betting man, take them while they’re 4/1.

    Remove Pasveer is no Onana, in fact he’s not even Stekelenburg. Not to say the loss was his fault, but Onana could always pull off a wonder save or two to inspire the team. Pasveer just makes expected saves.

    Ajax looked like Spain just after their glory days when they were looking to pass the ball into the net rather than just hit it. Don’t get me wrong, the passing looked great, but they need someone to shoot the final ball and no one was willing to.

    I’m in Nice now, going to check out Kluivert and hopefully Stengs this afternoon. Watched the Monaco game on TV and Boadu had a great chance 1v1 to open the scoring but missed.

    1. Got to watch Nice and Reims play out a 0-0 draw but it was nice to see some Dutch players. Kluivert was the best of the bunch and the fans in Nice enjoy him. I think it will be a good move for him. He should start every game and will be able to gain confidence there.

      Rosario put in a good shift in a crowded midfielder.

      Sierhuis actually looked pretty good considering he had no service. Looks like he got strong this off season, was holding the ball up well.

      Stengs didn’t even make the bench.

      2. thanks Derek. hope to hear alot about Ligue 1 football.I have said this before, Kluivert’s development has been going good since joining Roma and then at loan at RB Leizig. agree with you about him getting regular minutes at Nice and gaining more confidence. again my projection for 2024 and 2026, these players will be in the entering that phase where they will provide a good depth for NT.

        I also see Botman scored for Lille. the game ended 3-3 draw.

  52. AZ won their last practice game against Torino 2:1. It was a good game, particularly the first half. AZ conceded very little but the attack was not very sharp until Poku and Pavlidis came to play. Those two were decisive in scoring a winning goal. Overall, I am happy with the practice games and looking forward to a new season. It is going to be a tough competition this year as both PSV and Feyenoord improved in their quality. AZ lost many key players and it will require a lot of art from the coach Pascal Jansen to keep AZ in top three. Also we will be signing a new goalkeeper from Denmark and a Norwegian left back.

  56. ok Messi to PSG. This will have huge implication on the fringe and upcoming players who were vaying for a spot and opportunity to play. I think Simons should go out loan now. if he stays he will waste another season for sure. wijnaldum too could become a causality here, should Messi be preferred in the middle.

      1. Both PSV and Feyenoord have blostered their squad and should be able to compete with Ajax tjis season. At europa stage I tjink they needs to built a formuddble depth like what Ajax had ladt seadon.brobbery was very instrumental coming of the bench, kudus, Neres who came back from injury.

  57. Gosh I though PsV was already gone through into the champions league group stages
    But they have yet to play another opponent ?????????? And it’s benefica gosh

    What’s wrong with Dutch football , it’s gonna take so much tension to even see two Dutch teams in the group stages

  58. PSV needs to be carefully they dont get burnt out with the hectic sechdule which is set to continue with eredividsie starting these weekend. Schmidt reshuffled the team vs FC Midtjlland after the Ajax win but they still looked fatigued. Midtjlland had some good chances but couldnt bury it. Not sure if Schmidt might wanna rest some players for the benfica game.bit disappointed with Gakpo, he still looks hangover from euros and needs to get back to his full stride. That Vertessen guy also looks to be an explosive player but still early days. Lastly I think they need to get another striker to compete with Zahavi upfront. I hope they can lure zivkovic from china. His contract is expiring in December and he is no where to be seen at Changchun Yatai.

  59. Im sure him and Raiola must be working on something. I think for PSG it will turn out to be the scenario where too many cook spoil soup. Remember that Real Madrid dream team that had figo,Ronaldo,Zindane,Beckham,Carlos,Raul etc. They never won big.

  60. Can you imagine how Ramos and Messi will be seeing each other eye to eye everyday playing together. The two nemesis, bitter rivals from those dirty El clasicos

    1. I also think Man United is a good team in building and Ole Gunnar Solskjær can pull off what SAF did especially with the arrival of varane and sancho. Team to look out for this season in epl.

      My Arsenal is still in the midst of bewildness and looks like it will be another roller coaster ride this season for them. Are improving but not to a big fold.
      City, united and Liverpool for the title

  61. transfers of Dutch Players that have gone under the radar.

    Kevin Diks – AGf – FC Cophengen. scored twice in the europa fixture. bit surprised eredivisie team did not approach him.

    Rick Van Drongelen – Hamburg – Union Berlin. 4 seasons at Hamburg and now back in the top flight after out for six month due knee injury.

    Joel Zwarts – Excelsior – Jahn Regensburg. Bundasliga 2 has already started and zwarts has already scored his first goal for them. has taken a long route but definitely somebody to look out for in future. if you recall, this guy was at feyenoord and they let him go

    Thomas Ouwejan – Udinese – Schalke. as mentioned Bundasliga 2 has entered its second round and Thomas Ouwejan has been a starter at wing back in both games.

    Ludovit Reis -Osnabrück – Hamburg. again featured in bundasliga 2 and also scored in the opening fixture.

    Joshua Zirkzee – Bayern Munich – Anderlecht

    Aex Buttner – Free agent – RKC Waalwijk. hope he finds some redemption coming back to eredivsie.

    tahith chong – Man United – on loan Birmingham City

    Juan Carlos Familia-Castillo – Chelsea -on loan Birmingham City.

    Ian Maatsen -chelsea -on loan Coventry City

    Sergio padt – Groningen – Ludogorets. this is a surprise one to be honest. Ludogorets is active in the CL qualification and has qualified for playoff but padt has yet to feature for them and has been mainly involved in the league matches.

    wesley Hoedt – Lazio – Anderlecht

  62. Dumfries dropped and Vandijk, Rensch,Malacia are back in squad…thats huge update from Euro….Hope he drops De roon and klassen for Bazoer and Propper…Sooner…Berghuis is a misfit as well,though he is not a bad player…Danjuma Gronveld is head and shaoulder above him….I am sure terence kongolo will bavk in NT once he reagins fitness…

  64. No winjdal No dumfries Ja JA AJA…Soon klassen,De roon ,Berghuis will be chppped…Perhaps Gini wijnaldum would face trouble too…i love it…Van dijk and Depay are keen on winnning something on intenational level so they wont have rift with LVG..

  65. Refreshing to see new faces in the provisional squad. No Bergwijn, Veerman, Strujik, Danjuma, Kardsdorp, Schouten, Kluivert, Stengs, Rosario; seems LVG looks at Ajax, PSV, Feyenoord in Eredevisie and the top tier teams in the foreign leagues. This mode of selection is somehow similar to his 2014 WC selections isn’t? That’s my immediate impression, I stand corrected though..🤔

    1. This klassen guy,De roon and berghuis doesnt bring anything new to team…i am sure he will chop them soon…Ake is not in great form Struijk,Botman,Veerman,Danjuma,Stengs would be great addition..

  66. For you, AZ, (assist by Taabouni in a Jong AZ match)

    https://twitter.com/ESPNnl/status/1426273622931517450?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Eembeddedtimeline%7Ctwterm%5Eprofile%3Afootballoranje_%7Ctwgr%5EeyJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2hvcml6b25fdHdlZXRfZW1iZWRfOTU1NSI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJodGUiLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3NwYWNlX2NhcmQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib2ZmIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH19&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.football-oranje.com%2Fvan-gaal-explains-provisional-squad-choices%2F

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