Tag: Johan Cruyff

by Jan

Oranje’s future: Frenkie’s Farewell Tour

He’s 21 years old, hasn’t had a full season in Ajax 1, but already is he the new leader of Oranje (on the pitch) and the most talked about Dutch talent since… Memphis probably.

Frenkie de Jong. Gifted. But also intelligent and levelheaded. An important quality, both in terms of football intelligence (decision making) and generic intelligence. Everyone knows his story by now. In summary. Grew up in Brabant (PSV territory) but in a family of Feyenoord fans. Both clubs courted Frenkie for years, but Ajax got him in. Rumour has it, that Ajax really took the opportunity to whoo the youngster. When he visited De Toekomst (the Ajax youth Academy “The Future”), Bergkamp, Jaap Stam, Marc Overmars, Ronald de Boer and Edwin van de Sar all popped in to shake the lad’s hand. He decided to stay at Willem II until he finished school and joined Ajax.

Not long after breaking into the Ajax 1 team, most top clubs in Europe knew it for sure. The youngster they had on their radar made the final step up and would be ripe for a deal. Bayern Munich, Barca, Real Madrid, Man City, Spurs, they’re all keen to join in on the hunt for Frenkie de Jong.

De Jong has demonstrated in big games, that he’s able to perform. With Ajax in the Champions League, with Oranje in the Nations League, he makes it seem easy. And even though Frenkie plays “behind the ball” in a holding role, Feyenoord coach Gio van Bronckhorst decided to change his line up and tactics to take care of De Jong, with Jens Toornstra coming in the first team to manage the youngster. But to no avail. Toornstra’s first foul came in minute 2. A clumsy and actually quite mean-spirited step with the studs on the calf. Worthy of a red card.

From that moment on, it was clear that Feyenoord and Toornstra weren’t their usual self. Van Persie played as #9. Jorgensen operated as a false winger on the left and Toornstra played in the #10 role but only to step onto De Jong’s toes when possible. As a manmarker in the playmaker position.

It’s logical though. Van Persie doesn’t have the legs to deal with the playmaker/holding midfielders De Jong and Schone. But Feyenoord did want to pressure high up the pitch, so… this line up could work. But the Rotterdam team was so uptight that first Jens made a nasty foul to be followed by St Juste’s stupid hack on Tagliafico, resulting in Jerry’s fasted red card in Klassieker history.

AJAX Game component* FEYENOORD
68% Possession 32%
24/11 Shots/On target 6/2
13 Corners 6
9 Fouls 10
698/619 (89%) Passes/Good (percentage) 332/253 (76%)
164/73 (45%) Duels/Won (percentage) 164/91 (55%)
35/17 (49%) Aerial duels/Won (percentage) 35/18 (51%)

After the red card, Feyenoord was lost. The confidence decreased even more and it was unclear how to proceed. Van Persie and Jorgensen decided to keep the press on, where possible, but half of the Feyenoord team didn’t participate. Usually, when playing with 10, teams will go to a 4-4-1 and aim for damage control but the timing in the Feyenoord team and the communication about when to press and when to drop deep was gone. And with the fact that Ajax has a better player than Feyenoord on every position, it makes it very hard. Only Berghuis might be good enough for this Ajax, most other Feyenoord players will have to accept being second-tier to the Sons of Gods.

It is telling that a young kid in midfield is the reason for Feyenoord to change their tactics and playing style. But Feyenoord isn’t alone. Benfica did it too, in the CL match last week. Gedson Fernades became Frenkie’s guard but despite that, the former Willem II playmaker was able to dominate the game and become one of the key players on the pitch, just like he got the Man of the Match award after the Feyenoord game.

How is it that Frenkie de Jong can play the way he plays? Well, for starters: the team is set up to get the most out of him. Daley Blind and Mathijs de Ligt have exceptional qualities for a centre back: great build up pass, wonderful ball skills and technique and good tactical vision. They both have their eyes forward always. Lasse Schone, the other holding mid is also a player with the skill to accelerate the game and as the two full backs will push forward and force the wingers of the opponent back, there is a quartet of Ajax players playing opposite 3 opponents. And all four are wonderful players on the ball. And should the pass not be possible, no worries, Frenkie simply drops all the way back next to Blind to offer an outball. As he has the ability to swivle and dribble his way into midfield.

The differences between Clasie and De Jong are interesting to observe and demonstrate the difference in intentions between Ajax and Feyenoord. Both players are the deep lying playmakers with the task to accelerate the game where possible. De Jong had 4 times as many passes as Clasie. And that is not just a result of the red card, as De Jong is constantly sought and found by his team mates, which is less the case for Clasie.

FRENKIE DE JONG ASPECT* JORDY CLASIE
Defensieve middenvelder Position Defensieve middenvelder
94 Minutes on the pitch 94
198/182 Total number of actions/good 72/60
5/2 shots/on target –
141/132 (94%) Passes/good (percentage) 40/33 (83%)
5/2 Key passes/good 1/1

Clasie is definitely more a passer. De Jong is more a dribbler. He is sometimes called a postman, but it’s not fair. His quality is to draw players towards him, when he dribbles, allowing him to create a man more situation by taking the opponent on or by passing to the free man. De Jong is an old-fashioned playmaker like Fernando Redondo or Gunther Netzer who can play from a controlling position, as he has learned to defend and re-capture possession when needed.

Ajax already received an offer for 70M euros for the player and as the season wears on, that number will increase, with allegedly an 80M offer in the making by Man City. This kid will leave Ajax next summer. The biggest objective Overmars has, is to make sure he’s not gone in the winter break.

Obviously, there are other players high on scouting lists. Mathijs de Ligt will have to cost a similar amount as the 19 year old captain has everything to become a world class phenomenon. Andre Onana is on the hit list of Spurs and Argentine captain Tagliafico will probably not stay much longer either, with several Italian and Spanish clubs preparing offers.

Enjoy these players while you can!

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by Jan

Koeman’s Kids on the radar!

We didn’t qualify for two big tournaments, we burned through some very decent coaches in a short time (Advocaat, Blind, Hiddink), we produced thigh thick reports about how dreadful our football has become, bowed our heads in shame when Vincent Janssen failed at Spurs, Memphis failed at ManU and Bazoer failed at… I don’t even know where he failed… and we all need to learn how to play football again, from the Germans! That is only a year or so ago…

Today, Europe has taken notice. There is a new sheriff in town and he brought some exciting deputies. Koeman’s Kids is the phrase. And the mix of the squad seems to be quite good. From old hands Babel, Cillesen, Wijnaldum and Strootman, to team players Blind, De Vrij and Propper to stars in the making De Ligt, Bergwijn and Dumfries… We are excited again!

And with reason.

Some interesting little symptoms that bode well. Just randomly. A 70 mio euro offer for Frenkie, from Man City. Or, on the other end of the spectrum: a distraught and highly critical Pablo Rosario beating himself up after his below average debut. Or Denzel Dumfries who humbly admits his ball technique needs a lot of work (“I have hard feet”). This squad exudes joy, comradery, ambition and above all: exceptional quality!

The win over Germany and the draw against Belgium is another big step forward in Koeman’s mission to bring Oranje back to the top. And the signs are positive: the interception of Donny van de Beek, snakelike. The turnover and high quality counter. Within a nano second the ball goes from Promes to Memphis and his pinpoint pass has the angle and the weight, perfect for Danjuma to finish. All this, within 15 seconds of retrieving the ball.

Sure, Belgium had pressure, dominated and created chances, but Oranje fought and countered and could have won it.

And Ronald Koeman can take the credit. He brings balance, structure and maturity to the picture. Realism. The joy was big after the Germany win, but immediately after the match Koeman put his foot on the brakes. He saw some tactical mistakes in the second half. He saw the spaces becoming bigger, with the team on the fence between pushing up or sitting deep. “We keep on stressing the points we need to improve. We’re going ok, but there is much much more potential, things to improve. But give these kids three more years, all the Champions League experience and what not, and check again in 2021 where we will be.”

The players are happy with Koeman’s directness, with his clarity. His team selections and squad selections are logical, with a strong fixed core of players and players who get the chance to show themselves. Patterns and “automatisms” are showing more and more.

Jasper Cillesen is the number 1 goalie. Without debate. Even with him being a bench warmer in the Nou Camp. The central defenders duo will be De Ligt van Van Dijk. A top defender from the EPL with a top talent with a tremendous future in front of him.

In midfield, it seems Frenkie de Jong and Gini Wijnaldum will be the usual suspects. Gini’s qualities will become more apparent with a player like De Jong behind him. Marten de Roon was excellent vs Germany, but surely Propper and Van de Beek can fill the third man’s shoes as well. With Carel Eijting and Pablo Rosario making big steps, it seems Strootman’s role will become smaller and smaller.

Up top, Memphis is the key man, with Ryan Babel currently his side man. Bergwijn, Danjuma, Promes, but also AZ’s Stengs or Roma’s Kluivert can come in to complete the forward 3.

This Oranje does know how to deal with space. And with prospects like Fosu-Mensah, Van Aanholt, Dumfries, Karsdorp, Janmaat and even Ake and Vilhena for the wide back roles, the mix of talent and experience is really good.

In the international break before this last one, we got some colour back on our cheeks. Now, we can even muster a smile…

A tpyical weapon Koeman is putting a lot of time and effort in, is the dead ball. Every team works on that, of course, but Koeman made it clear he sees the free kick / dead ball situation as an extraordinary opportunity. “When you dominate, you will have opportunities galore to find a gap and create a chance. When you play more compact and will have less possession, against the stronger teams, the dead ball situation can make all the difference. For this reason, we put more emphasis on it. We even train and practice and talk through these situations on the match day. When you have players who can deliver, like we do (Memphis, Dumfries, Janmaat, Blind) and players who can win aerial battles (Van Dijk, De Ligt, Dumfries, Strootman, Ake) you’d be silly not to use their qualities.” And it shows: Van Dijk scored vs Portugal like this, Nathan Ake vs Italy and now Van Dijk again from a Memphis corner kick.

Memphis playing in between the lines, pulling away from the defenders and coming into the zone vs statically being there…

Another weapon we use with flair, is the false #9. Most central defenders like to play against static strikers. Lets make it an even battle, between strength, length, timing… Defenders like Ramos, Hummels, Skertl, Thiago and Ottamendi to name a few, will love to play against Luuk de Jong. But when Tadic plays #9 for Ajax vs Bayern or Memphis vs Germany their weaknesses show. It’s not new of course, one Johan Cruyff started it maybe, in the 70s. Every nation back then had a Gerd Muller like #9. Holland didn’t even play with a player wearing the 9 on his jersey :-). Messi perfected that with Barca and Memphis Depay is quickly becoming the new standard. The alternative to Benteke, Lukaku, Lewandowski and Giroud.

After the first weeks with Oranje, Koeman criticised Memphis for being to static. Playing like a pedestrian. “Move Memphis, run!”. And Memphis picked it up. He makes himself available in between the lines, he knows when to dribble, when to go deep without the ball, when to hold up play…. Against Germany, he had 5 attempts on goal and created 3 chances.

Holland doesn’t need to dominate anymore, to win. Based on our compact organisation, the effectiveness on dead balls and the world class qualities of Van Dijk/De Ligt/F De Jong/ Memphis we can kills opponents off without seeing much of the ball. A luxury Holland never had.

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by Jan

Derby of the Low Lands… Never friendly…

The win over Germany resulted in some interesting responses. Ronald Koeman, usually critical and sceptical, was very positive about his lads. He lauded their work rate, their skills, their quality and actually said that he expects great things from this group… The Dutch media approached the result as a Dutch Spring after years of winter. Obviously, the German media focused on the abysmal form of the Germans and wondered if it wasn’t time for Low to step down.

Most international media (French, Spanish, English) concluded that “Holland is back”. Only the media in Belgium decided to have a typical Dutch arrogant approach: “Don’t think you’re back coz you beat the weak Germans! We are better than them!”. The rivalry between Holland and Belgium, it never bores. We are probably considered “the Germans of Belgium” so to speak…

The match up with Belgium is never boring. And it’s never a friendly either. Although the Rijkaard coached NT back in the Euro2000 prep came close to a demonstration game with Belgium, with a 5-5 end result. We had a 9-1 and all sorts of results… But in the serious matches, we also had red cards, razor sharp tackles and excitement galore.

Dutch squad entering the stadium in Brussels

This time around, Belgium is the favorite and Holland the underdog. Belgium is the #1 on the FIFA ranking (Holland is currently #17), with players like De Bruyne, Kompany, Hazard and Lukaku. In 2012, the Red Devils played Holland for the last time and won 4-2. In 15 minutes, Belgium scored 3 times and the southern neighbours played Van Gaal’s eleven drunk. Axel Witsel saw the Dutch game vs Germany, but wouldn’t want to use that as a “key game” in Holland’s reversal of fortune, just like that 4-2 vs Holland wasn’t key for them. “Holland is back, it’s clear, they do have a good group of talented players, but to speak about key games… It’s never one game, it all comes down to all the work done in the years prior. But we are looking forward to this match. It will not be a friendly, I don’t think.” For both nations, a lot is at stake. Belgium wants to keep their spot at #1, while Holland wants to further confirm their way back to the top.

Willem van Hanegem, Holland’s living football legend and oracle: “This match and the development of players like Frenkie de Jong and Steven Bergwijn tells me one very important thing: our youth development is still pretty good. All those years of whining and complaining. There is nothing wrong with what we do. But there is something wrong with how we look and how we observe. Players like Dumfries, Virgil van Dijk and Arnaut Danjuma were ignored by the top 3. Players like Rosario and Bergwijn (and before them: Promes and Elia) were sent away by Ajax. Marten de Roon was sent away by Feyenoord. It is all about recognising talent. That is key. What really irks me, is that 5 months ago, the whole Dutch football world proclaimed that we needed to do what Germany is doing. We needed to borrow their smarts. And now, 5 months later, we beat them and we are on the up and up and Germany is on the way down. All that opportunistic waffling… Scoreboard journalism, we are very good at that. We did not copy what Germany did, and still we are developing talent. I also think Rosario would have made his debut if he wasn’t suspended. It’s all about recognising talent and being careful and cautious with their development.”

Van Hanegem with one player who was recognised early as a top player and one who wasn’t…

Romelu Lukaku is a player at the top of his game. He’s only 25 years old and already the top scorer of the Red Devils. He scored 28 times in his last 26 internationals. Who will stop him? Mathijs de Ligt smiles: “This is a major challenge. He’s tall, strong and fast. I don’t think I ever played against someone like him. I know, I need to be 100% top and I look forward to it. The better the opponent, the better I feel.” De Ligt is already working on it. “I watch Youtube videos to analyse his movements, how and when he takes in a position. Lewadowski and Lacazette are also super strikers. Like Lukaku.”

Ronald Koeman gave De Ligt another compliment, even after his weak start vs Germany. “But that is the point, he started not so great, but he fought back and got back into the game. That is tremendous. Not a lot of 19 year olds can do that.”

Koeman will make some changes and not take too many risks. Captain Van Dijk is back in Liverpool already due to his rib injury and the expectation is that Rosario will make his debut at some stage. He probably would have played vs Germany, but just before the match, Koeman was informed that Rosario’s suspension at Young Oranje level also applied to the senior team. For Belgium, its seems De Bruyne, Vertonghen, Vermaelen and Dembele won’t play and the fitness of Fellaini and Kompany is a question mark.

If Virgil van Dijk is the new leader of Oranje, his Liverpool buddy Wijnaldum seems freed from the shackles in his new role in midfield. In previous outings, with Sneijder on the 10 position, Gini was the first player to get the ball from defense and was responsible for the through ball forward. That is a position where risk is to be completely banned. Wijnaldum was always told to keep the balance, make sure Robben and Sneijder don’t have to do too much work and play sober. Now, with Frenkie de Jong or Daley Blind behind him, Wijnaldum is the forward playing midfielder who receives the second ball in midfield. When he plays in between the lines. And boy, he demonstrated vs France and now vs Germany how well he can play that role. Wijnaldum: “Do I enjoy the compliments now? Yes, but hey.. many times, it wasn’t good. And I think it has to be said if it isn’t good. But at the same time, Strootman and myself became easy targets.” Now, Wijnaldum demonstrated his tremendous powerhouse role late in the game, when Memphis hit the cross bar with a rocket, it was Wijnaldum on the edge of the Germany box picking up the ball. When he lost it, he ran all the way back to his own box, to join in in the defence. When, however, the Germans were pushed back, Wijnaldum ran forward again, to pick up the ball, pass two Germans and hit the ball in the net. That is something not many players can do after 90 minutes of hard work. “Oh no, it hurts. It really does and it costs strength, but that is what I do and will do. This is just one match. We need to do this time and time again. Because we can.”

The final words are for Koeman. He is not surprised that the mood in Holland has lifted tremendously. “That is normal. Our fans have not been spoiled lately so a win like this is landing on fertile ground. But, it is my role to analyse also what didn’t go well. And we have way to go. We are on the right track but we are really back to the top, not when we reach the Euros but when we actually compete for the top spot.”

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by Jan

And the Germans are going: 3-0 for Oranje!

I am quite sure no one will read the title of this post and be surprised. I’m sure every Oranje fan will have seen the game or at least know the end result. The first time Holland beats Germany in 16 years and the biggest victory over the East Neighbours ever.

Well done lads!

A deserved win, but also a much needed one. Because, yes…it is clear we are developing great talent still and yes, it seems with Koeman now as coach and the older generation having made way, Oranje is on the up and up, but in order to really make the step up, results are key.

Good play (like vs France) but losing gets tiresome soon.

So, we bucked the trend. We played a strong team and actually won. And I’m sure we’ll beat Belgium too in a couple of days. That is what confidence and “flow” bring.

I was positively surprised by Koeman’s choices for the line up. I expected Hateboer or De Ligt on that flank, not Dumfries. But the 22 year old did ever so well. I was happy to see Bergwijn on the pitch – he was a tad unlucky – and didn’t expect De Roon either.

Koeman will have seen things at training which he liked. I think De Roon played a good game and he did surprise me with a couple of “Frenkie de Jong” like forward passes even.

Fair is fair, Germany isn’t that good anymore. They struggled clearly to get in a flow and top players like Muller and Kroos are clearly struggling with their form. Nevertheless, they did dominate the first stage of the game, when Oranje looked a bit complacent and seemed to take it a bit too easy. Too much confidence, maybe?

In particular De Ligt fell victim of sloppy play but he did improve quickly and played a good game overall.

I felt Bergwijn, with all his quality, was a bit unlucky with his decision making and passing, he had a couple of opportunities to play a deadly final pass but missed the chance.

Frenkie de Jong took some time to put his mark on the game but once he did, he was quite mercurial and his substitution was purely because if fitness issues (Frenkie’s first game since the PSV defeat).

The Dutch axis is becoming very strong indeed! Cillesen is the best goalie, De Ligt/Van Dijk a strong couple, Frenkie de Jong the ideal deep lying playmaker and Memphis leads the line with panache, strength and speed. I like Wijnaldum in the more attacking role, but I think Promes, Propper, Bergwijn and Van de Beek can play there too. Wide, we have options too, now with Danjuma, Berghuis, Kluivert, Dilrosun, Bergwijn and others coming through (Malen!).

Our future is bright.

Still, Germany was able to play through a couple of times, when Low brought Sane finally, for instance. But overall the team did well defensively. I think Daley Blind played well as left back and really well in the Frenkie role, when the latter was subbed.

If I can be a bit of a nitpicker: I do think we could and should have put this game to bed much sooner. 1-0 is a vulnerable score line. And with the break opportunities we had, we should do much better. We were also a bit unlucky on that Dumfries cross to Babel, where the German defender miraculously slid into his own goal but manage to work the ball into a corner.

Denzel Dumfries was glad to have made his debut in such a wonderful and historic match. The PSV right back was like a kid in the toy shop and with reason. Only 4 years ago, he played for the Barendrecht amateurs before he made his foray into second tier of pro football with Sparta. He then went from Sparta to Heerenveen and as the assist king made his way to PSV Eindhoven, this season.

Ronald Koeman had trouble hiding his victorious smile in the post match interview, and did concede that “there are still things we need to improve in” but he also said that this was a victory we really needed. “The players, the fans…the whole nation needed this.” And after a lot of bad luck (Dost disallowed goal vs Sweden, France-Sweden game, goal difference between Sweden – Holland), we did get some luck going our way, when Leroy Sane missed the target when he was through on goal.

But we managed to keep a clean sheet and score when it mattered. The first Van Dijk goal turned the game around, as Holland won in confidence and Germany seemed to be at odds and sods. The second and third goals came a bit late (Memphis had a go at the cross bar before that) but the goals did justice to the way Oranje played.

Another festive moment before the match, Oranje legends Dirk Kuyt and Rafa van der Vaart had their place in the sun, their farewell greeted with a standing ovation. The two centennials (Rafa 107 caps, Kuyt 104) were offered their epic jerseys framed with the new title of Federation Knight for both former Oranje players.

 

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by Jan

The Germans are coming!

Any match vs Germany (or West Germany) will bring the heart rate of any Oranje fan up. The pantomime villains! But if we get a double bill for games, vs Germany (our neighbours on the East) AND the Belgians (our neighbours to the South), well… any Oranje fan would start salivating.

We do have a firm rivalry with both nations and now we’ll meet them both in the course of 4 days. There is a God! The rivalry with Belgium is more brotherly. We actually like the Belgium people. We love their country, their food, their beaches and we also are impressed with their national team, at the moment. We had massive competitive games against them, but also some amazing friendlies, with heaps of goals and lots of good memories.

Less so with the Germans. Yes, those clashes in the 40-45 World Cup…eh.. War didn’t help. The first post-war match at top level was the finals in 1974 of course.

How many articles / posts have I not written about this in the past 14 years! On the Worldcupsoccerblog and on this blog… All these wonderful stories, anecdotes… But whatever we say about it, we lost. That doesn’t change. I remember vividly watching the game. I was 12 years old (yes!) and watching the games at my holiday address, with heaps of other people. A colour tv, but a small screen. I sat on the floor, right with my nose on the screen.

In those days, the expectations around the national team were low. Really low, as somehow it never really register with the pros. They were paid for by the clubs, they weren’t properly insured when playing for the NT and somehow, we weren’t too interested. When Holland went to West Germany for the World Cup, no one expected them to shine. And with reason, as we actually scored our winning qualification goal in off side position and actually didn’t deserve to go. And ironically, Belgium didn’t qualify as a result of that goal. A good reason for them to dislike us!

So there I was. Johan Cruyff was an untouchable. He was an Ajax player, so as a Feyenoord fan I wasn’t openly a JC fan, but like anyone, in my heart I adored him as a player. Willem van Hanegem was my fave. Partly because he played for Feyenoord and partly because he lived just one block away from me. As did midfielder Wim Jansen. We had some rock stars in the team too, the 5th and 6th Beatle: Ruud Krol and Johnny Rep. And there were some unknown players part of the team too. Players a 12 year old didn’t see play often: Robbie Rensenbrink, who was at Anderlecht. The snake man. What a player! I didn’t get why Keizer didn’t play on the left wing, but after seeing one match (vd Uruguay) it was clear why Rensenbrink was the man. Jan Jongbloed, our sweeper keeper was another unknown, a massive masterstroke by Michels Cruyff to put him in.

But the Germans got the better of us. Was it our arrogance? Was it the night of lost sleep, as JC had to spend hours on the phone with his wife pre-match, to explain the naked girls in the swimming pool? Was it the sheer quality of Sepp Maier, who simply stopped every ball aimed at the German goal?

Who knows. Willem van Hanegem says it was arrogance. Johan Cruyff said he was played out of the game by Berti Vogts. Others will point to the ref and the first real schwalbe/dive by Holzenbein, getting the Germans their penalty.

But the world took notice. And Oranje made its mark. Winning or losing, it didn’t matter.

We need a revenge though. In 1976, we bitterly disappointed, with red cards for our star players. In 1978, we took on the West Germans again and drew 2-2. We ended up in the finals again, and West Germany didn’t. Still, it didn’t feel like revenge.

In 1980, the Germans were boss. Holland disappointed massively and in 1982, 1984 and 1986, we didn’t compete. Long long stories. And all these stories have been told, here and at other blogs in the past. Simply ask me if you want me to rehash them.

Then came 1988. The 12 year old fan was now a 26 year old supporter, with some ties to Feyenoord and the national newspaper Algemeen Dagblad. And as a result, found himself in Hamburg on the stands. My partner worked for the newspaper and called me up at 11 am-ish. “I have tickets for the game, you gotta come now!” I drove from Amsterdam (my place of work) to Rotterdam (where the newspaper resides) to pick her up and our tickets. Changed clothes at home and off we went to Hamburg. We arrived 30 mins before the game and saw Oranje win vs West Germany (1-2) in an unforgettable match. The one where West Germany and Holland both got a gift penalty. The one where Van Basten scored the winner in the last minute. The one where Ronald Koeman wiped his ass with Olaf Thon’s shirt and Van Breukelen yelled at “I hope you focking sterbst” to Frank Mill…

And while we walked out of the stadium, in a state of joy, my partner saw a sports editor of her newspaper, and we tagged along to the players’ hotel to celebrate the win till the early morning. I vividly remember a somewhat boozy conversation with a young bloke at the party whom I later recognised as a very young Richard Witschge. Around 2 am I realised we still had 5,5 hours to drive home as work was waiting the next morning and we decided to leave.

The story of our trip to Munich the Sunday next, where Holland took on the USSR in the finals is even more epic, but will have to wait for another time. Now its about The Germans!

In 1990, the same squad albeit with Richard Witschge among others, was keen to win the World Cup, in Italy. We played Germany again and that is where the comparison with 1988 stops. It was shocking. Holland actually didn’t play that bad vs Germany, but our key players simply didn’t come to the party. Ruud Gullit and Marco van Basten in particular were sub-standard. Our best players were John van ‘t Schip and Jan Wouters, with Rijkaard getting the spotlights spitting a big one in Voller’s wig. We lost. And had to go home. The players lamented after the World Cup that the power struggle between Cruyff and Michels had demoralised the team and Beenhakker’s army boot camp in Yugoslavia prior to the tournament didn’t help either. If you wanted a performance from the likes of Gullit and Rijkaard, it was key to have a player’s hotel close to the action (clubs, girls, pizza) and not in a remote and desolate castle with nothing to do but to moan and whinge and whine.

I watched this game at home again, in despair. The group stage of Oranje was already abyssmal so expectations were not too high. Most supporters were distraught that the KNVB ignored the wishes of the players and signed Leo Beenhakker for the coaching job.

In 1992, at the Euros. Oranje got the chance to take revenge on the Germans and we did. In a master class, in which Van Basten conducted Bergkamp’s goals (pointing at Winter where to place the ball) and an uncharacteristic distance striker from Rob Witschge, Holland won 3-1 in probably the best performance a Dutch national team demonstrated vs the Teutons. I remember watching this game with my best friend Nico and my life partner of course in my home, where we ended up dancing through the apartment block, convinced we’d win the title, against the beach team of the Danes.

In 1994, the Allied forces the US organisers of the World Cup keep Holland and Germany separated.

In 1996, we sadly don’t meet them either. We end up being dressed down by England and Germany ends up winning the Euros with the worst team ever.

At so the list goes on. We have been able to keep them at bay in 1998, 200o, 2002 (by not qualifying) and meet them again in Portugal 2004. First group game, and Germany tastes first blood. Van Nistelrooy scores the equaliser late in the game and everyone is happy with the draw. In 2006 we miss out on playing them, same in 2008 and 2010. It’s 2012 when we do end up playing them again in the group stage and after a good start (15 minutes or so) we forget to defend and allow them to score first. A situation we simply can’t overcome and despite having the silver medal at home of that previous World Cup, we end up going home. In 2014, again, the Germans are able to get to the finals without having to play us and that must have helped them a lot.

By now, all stories about how Germany took a couple of pages from the Dutch football Academy book in 2000 are fairly well known. They re-invigorated their youth development and started to play more Dutch than German. Their horrific tournament in Russia this year is a clear testament how the Germans have really started to copy all we do….

What will happen tomorrow?

Well, I think we’ll win 2-1. I think Germany will be a tad nervous, a bit forced maybe, and on their toes for the young Dutch talents.

I think Koeman will play the following 11:

Cillesen

De Ligt – De Vrij  – Van Dijk  – Van Aanholt

Wijnaldum – Frenkie De Jong – Daley Blind – Strootman

Bergwijn – Memphis

I think Memphis and Wijnaldum will score.

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by Jan

What is the Nations League?

I had a nice analysis prepared for today, focusing on Oranje and Koeman’s options but AZ Forever mowed the lawn under my feet! (Dutch expression)

In case you wonder: why the Frenkie de Jong pic for this Nations League post? Well, because from all I have seen, Frenkie makes the difference. He makes the team flow. He makes it look easy. He moves constantly, he sees the ideal solution, is flawless in his passing and he’s moving the team forward.

If I was Koeman, I would say Van Dijk Van Schwijk, Memphis Schmemphis, De Ligt De Schmigt, Cillesen Schmillesen: Frenkie is the first name on the team sheet.

That is what happens when you’re 10 hours behind (actually: in front, but in practice: behind due to time difference… I can only see Oranje matches the next day really).

So now Oranje analysis but a look at the Nations League and what it is.

It’s a new tournament for national teams, basically.

The UEFA realised that friendlies aren’t really helping a lot. The quality of the games are inconsistent and mostly poor. So this Nations League is an upgrade from friendlies, with a link to a ticket to the EC/WC tournaments.

There will still be friendlies, like the Peru – Sneijder farewell match, and in the run up to big tournaments, of course.

Every two years, we will have a Nations League tournament, in the odd year. So now we have the European Championship, World Cup, Confederations Cup and the Nations League. A bit much?

Surely, we will go to some big tournament again??

We will have the first edition now, with six match games in September, October and November. It’s also an alternative route to the European Cup. Four of the 24 competing nations will qualify for the EC2020 via the Nations League.

In March 2020, the 16 group winners will compete in play offs, within their division. Should the winners have qualified for the EC2020 already, the next best placed in that division will get the ticket for the EC.

This will be done based on position in the group, number of points, goal difference, number of goals scored, number of goals scored in away games, number of duels won, number of away duels won, Fair Play and finally the coefficient table.

Long story short: per division, the four best nations who haven’t qualified for the EC2020 will play the play offs. And it’s a knock out system. It’s a chance for countries missing out on the regular qualifications to still get to the EC.

The normal qualification games will start in March 2020 and not, like in the past, straight after the World Cup. This competition will result in 20 of the 24 competitors for the EC. The two top teams per group (10 groups). The final results in the Nations League will also be impacting the position in the draw for the EC.

So, in June 2019, we will have a mini EC played. There are different divisions and the 4 winners of Division A groups will go to the Euro2020. The winners of Division B will move up to the division up, while the last in the Division will get demoted down.

I think some people got their doctorate coming up with this system, but hey… more football, so….

Anyway, Holland is in the group with Germany and France. They both played already and drew.

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by Jan

Farewell to Wesley Sneijder

The next international game vs Peru has Sneijder’s farewell as the main theme. The new qualification series for the Euros is starting too, but all eyes and focus are on the little captain first. 34 year old and with 133 caps to his name, the former skipper looks back and looks forward from Qatar, his current home.

“I decided to go to Qatar also because of the World Cup coming here. Football is alive here and I enjoy exploring these types of countries. We loved living in Turkey, and we love it here. And when the World Cup comes, who knows, I hope to play some part. Maybe for Qatar, for the FIFA or maybe for Oranje. And until that time, I want to be an active player. Playing football is the best thing there is.”

Sneijder lives like a prince in Qatar. He describes his day. “In the morning, I am busy with my non football activities. I have a building company in Turkey, and we’re building apartments in Istanbul. In China I have SPort8, a youth academy company and I also have SportChain which is a crypto company. On Ibiza I own a restaurant and since this week I’m also ambassador for the Johan Cruyff Foundation. So, busy enough. Then it’s time for lunch and an afternoon nap and in the evening we have training. And when Yolanthe is here with our son we do fun things as a family. And hey, I know the stories, the big paychecks and what not, but I could have made more, much more, in China. But quality of life is important too. I don’t think I would have been happy in China. Life here is comfortable, hardly any crime, and I met a lot of cool new friends, locals and Dutch expats, all sorts. And Nigel de Jong and family lives here too of course.”

Last weekend, they played against each other, again. “We had our derbies in Milan and now here, hahaha. We beat him 4-0 but I decided to float a bit on the pitch as I didn’t want to get to near to him. I still have an Oranje match to play, hahaha.”

The matches in Doha are played before 100s of people, instead of 1000s. “It took some time to get used to, but like anything, you do get used to it. Playing before a full Bernabeu becomes normal and this becomes normal too. I think I prepared well mentally for this step and I enjoy myself. Just the training sessions alone and making fun with my team mates. I’m now at an age where I can support the coaching staff and I enjoy that.”

Wesley’s Favorite Coaches. “You won’t find Louis van Gaal in my top 3. Yes, he’s a great coach, just not my great coach, hahaha.”

#3 Danny Blind

“I worked with him at Ajax and Oranje, and I think the success we had in 2014 was partly his work. Van Gaal got the credits, but Danny was important with analysis, training sessions and he was a wonderful guy to work with. A special coach.”

#2 Henk ten Cate

“He’s also a friend. But objectively, he is a very tough task master. He’s tough, he’s disciplined, he sees the game. I had my best season under him at Ajax. I scored 18 goals. And I was a bit complacent but he got me really going. And when I was unfit in 2013, he came to Ibiza to work with me to get me fit. Henk was also the one to motivate me to work on my fitness. He called me Billy Bigmans (Big = Pig). Told me I was too fat for the top. He challenged me and I needed that.”

#1 Jose Mourinho

“We didn’t work together that long. My most successful period. He is the special one, but you need to work with him to understand this. He has skills no one else has. His management skills, with 23 egos, that process. He can manage that so well. To get everyone focused for the big objective. Tactically, he is also super strong.”

After his failed Nice adventure, Ajax or FC Utrecht could have been Wes’ new club. But it didn’t happen. “I get that. Utrecht was actually more interested than Ajax but I decided to stay longer abroad. I enjoy this life. I do follow the Eredivisie by the way. Every match. And Nigel and I were cheering last week when we watched Ajax play Dynamo Kiev. We’re on the coach, and cheering Ajax on. That was fun. And I think Ajax will be doing so well, with the likes of De Ligt and De Jong. These two will be key for Dutch football. Everything they do has a forward focus and purpose. This is a natural thing for them. And I love that, which Is why I love watching Man City and Barcelona too. And with Memphis in good form and Van Dijk and Wijnaldum at Liverpool I really think Oranje has turned a corner. And particularly with Ronald Koeman as coach. He’s pragmatic, he demands a lot but he also has that Barca / Cruyff DNA. He’s good in his communication too.”

Talking about Oranje, the high point of his career needs to mentioned. “I have had many. I personally think our football at the 2008 Euros, in the group stages, was the best we played. Van Basten and Van’t Schip just said: go out there and play! We didn’t do much in a tactical sense. And we played ever so well, until that terrible thing with Boulahrouz. My first match vs Scotland was special too of course. I scored my first goal in the first 15 minutes or so. But the real high point was the Brazil quarter finals in 2010. When we were 1-0 down. And it wasn’t so much my two goals in the second half. It was what happened in the dressing room. I surprised myself. I came in latest and the whole team was staring at the floor. And I was like: Hey! We can go home a bunch of losers, or we go back out there and play. And take the game to them. And hurt them. And that did something. The heads came up, other players chimed in and we went out and turned the game around.”

In 2014, Sneijder again plays a main part in the World Cup story but differently, with his love-hate relationship with Van Gaal. “I frequently thought, is this guy a genius or is he insane?”. I think he’s both now. Hahaha. When Van Gaal first started I told him: you’ll need me there. And he did. But he decided to push me and pester me to get me to react. One example. During the tournament, we were on our day off and some of us went to this lounge bar for some drinks. Nothing spectacular. We returned, precisely at 10pm as instructed. Who is in the hotel lobby? Van Gaal. And we walk past him and he starts barking at me. Only at me: “So, why did Sneijder have to go to that lounge bar?” And I was like: “We all went, why are you not asking them?”. And he said: “Because I want to know from you!!”. And I just said “goodnight” and walked off. The next day, I was really pissed off and I played another good game. And I think now he did it to get me worked up. We did well with him, but I won’t pick him as my favorite coach. My top 3: Jose Mourinho, Henk ten Cate and Danny Blind.”

“After the WC in Brazil I realised we were not fully focused. We lost away vs Iceland, 2-0 and I knew we were in trouble. Not because we lost. But the manner in which we lost. We were without a chance. I even considered quitting but that’s not me. I wanted to fight back. But we were going downhill. My biggest low point was the 4-0 loss vs France under Advocaat. He put me in a 3 man’s midfield as the playmaker vs Kante. And I thought… oh… that is not smart… But what do you do? I should have said “Dick, please put me on the bench, that is not ending well” but I didn’t. The coach needed me and I wanted to deliver. But I don’t blame Guus Hiddink and Danny Blind. I blame the many players who decided to skip qualification games, only to play for their club 3 days later! No I won’t mention names, the players know exactly who they are. They let the team down. Fuck off. Should I ever become part of the Oranje staff, those types will have a problem with me, that is not on. You need to be proud to play for your country! Danny Blind’s sacking really hurt me. He was a perfect coach. As assistant to Van Gaal he was so important and his influence was huge. A real expert and he didn’t deserve that mentality.”

“The last years, it felt like some internationals needed to be pushed to play for Oranje. I think now these changes, the new Zeist centre instead of the players’ hotel in Noordwijk…all good measures. When players can’t deal with the freedom you need to create a situation where the focus is fully on the game. And it’s really a big trap, players thinking they are the Man because they are big at their club… You have to demonstrate that in the national team!”

“Another key concept is sacrifice. In 2010, we all were focusing on getting the best out of it. And the benchwarmers did their job. Huntelaar, Elia, Van der Vaart, no one was negative. How this changed in 2012. We had more players with big reputations and they couldn’t accept that bench role anymore. And I realised vs Denmark, if we lose this match, it will be all over. And it is such a shame. Players simply don’t realise how special it is to play one great tournament. Just one already is amazing…”

“My future, well… I can say this: I would not be able to think of anything better to do than be involved with the national team. I would love to be an assistant coach for Oranje. Being with the lads, parting my knowledge, setting up training, just sharing my experiences, you know? I spoke about it with Koeman. We’ll see. For now, I’m still playing and I will most likely keep on playing for a while still. But I love that whole group process of having a goal and working towards it. Preparing for a World Cup for instance. It’s amazing. And I paid attention with all the coaches I had. And I realised, you can be the best tactician but if you can’t communicate, if you can’t motivate your players to do something, it doesn’t matter. Mourinho was the maestro. He was able to let you do things you thought you couldn’t. He had the backroom staff for the practices, and the physiological stuff and tactical analysis. He simply asked you to do things for him and you did. Eto’o, a super striker, he was a flank player under Mourinho, running up and down and defending and attacking… Incredible. But now, my future is the Peru game. One more time part of the group. Having fun, kicking a ball, goosebumps with the national anthem. And then I will be watching Oranje on the coach, with a Heineken! Enjoying myself.

Below, Wesley’s favorite team of players he once played with:

 

Ok guys: tell me your best Wesley Sneijder memory below!

 

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by Jan

Dutch football on the up and up (again)

Wow! Two clubs in the Champions League group stages! What a luxury. Well done Ajax, well done PSV! A wonderful start to the season, particularly with Salzburg missing their chance, meaning that The Netherlands have surpassed Austria (sic!) on the coefficiency list of the UEFA and if all goes well and we get more than enough points together, we could have a direct placement in the CL group stages again in the 20/21 season! Yay!

And based on the draw, I wouldn’t be surprised if we actually get quite some points. Ajax doesn’t have that big a shock. Bayern Munich is definitely too good for us now, but, we play them the second time on the last day. This could be good. Bayern will most likely be placed already and might field a B-team!

The other two opponents seem doable. Beatable.

PSV however will have a mountain to climb, but with sensational ties. Spurs, Barca, De Vrij’s Inter…. Mouthwatering. And I do think PSV could well finish third in the group and go into the Europa League after the winter break.

Bloody annoying that Feyenoord and AZ didn’t do what they could have done and pulled their weight too!

Mark van Bommel deserves praise for the way PSV plays. It’s not all silky smooth yet, in particular in the Eredivisie PSV is not on steam. PEC Zwolle played PSV off the pitch, but…PSV didn’t concede while they took their chance in the last minute of the game to seal the win. That is a quality too.

But the team impressed vs Bate Borisov. Energetic, on the front-foot, playing like a real team. With much criticized Luuk de Jong as one of the leaders, a perfect target man and he is also finding the net again!

Pereiro being found in between the lines

Gaston Pereiro was the most skilled PSV player to never fulfil his promise, for a long time. Every one can see and could see he has tremendous qualities, but will he ever be consistent? Well, under Van Bommel he is the key man. The Dreh-und-Angel punkt. The metronome. Whenever PSV has trouble finding him, like against PEC Zwolle, PSV is under par. Whenever they can find him, like vs Utrecht and Bate Borisov, PSV plays well.

PSV is getting better and better in finding the man more situation on the pitch and the new full backs, former City man Angelino and ex Heerenveen back Denzel Dumfries are perfect for Mark’s game plan. They offer energy, runs forward in the channel and most importantly, great final balls.

And with Lozano and Bergwijn, PSV can dominate games and they can play on the counter attack! Promising, indeed!

PSV in counter attacking mode

The technical management of the club is as pro-active as the players, with two key signings on the night PSV secured CL football. Mexican midfielder and bossom buddy of Lozano Guiterez was signed, while Australian international full back Aziz Behich is coming in as well.

More news this week, Koeman’s Oranje squad. It lacks Weghorst (understandable), Berghuis (lacking form) and Bergwijn (harder to understand) and it will offer a debut to Frenkie de Jong (long overdue) in Oranje. Obviously, Wesley Sneijder will be part of the squad for the Peru game, as he will be farewilled in that game and start as captain.

Koeman called Van Bommel to explain why Bergwijn was not in the squad and why Kluivert (not a starter at Roma) is. Van Bommel declined to tell the media what Koeman told him. Most likely, Koeman wasn’t impressed with Bergwijn’s first matches (he only started to fire in the last week or so). And, Bergwijn is a player who, like Memphis, loves to come into the ball and doesn’t so much go deep or in behind without. This is what Kluivert will give you. That seems reasonable. But Bergwijn will definitely get his spot in the limelight, for sure.

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by Jan

New Season: Feyenoord

We covered Ajax and PSV, time to look at the number 3 of the Top 3 and the winner of the JC Shield: Feyenoord! Five trophies in four seasons is not bad, not bad at all.

The changes this summer were not too bad (knock on wood, transfer period isn’t over yet…). But Jorgensen didn’t get away, Vilhena didn’t get away and despite the interest for Berghuis (Germany) and Van Beek (Turkey), the only players who left are El Ahmadi (free transfer) and Bilal to Turkey for €1,000,000. Very late in the game, Brad Jones got a deal to go to the sand pit and the Australian goalie saw the writing by Bijlow on the wall – who played an amazing pre-season – and decided to prop up his pension fund by taking his exit.

So, with Robin van Persie staying on and homeboy Jordy Clasie returning on a loan deal Feyenoord looks in decent shape. Yassin Ayoub joined on a free deal from FC Utrecht and South American surprise Sinistera was signed to replace Bilal.

Clasie’s return is a good sign for the fans. The midfielder played a decent season for Club Brugge (“I played almost everything in the second season half… only when the finals came, I was dropped to the bench, without explanation. The coach wanted me to stay another year, but something broke when that happened..”). Clasie returned to Southampton and impressed Mark Hughes in the pre-season. Despite this, Clasie longed for a spell back in Rotterdam. Even a last sms by Hughes didn’t change things.

Clasie: “I want to play. Money doesn’t make you happy. Maybe I’m not a guy to play abroad, who knows. When I don’t play I need my friends and family around me, and when you’re in another country and you aren’t playing…it’s hard. But, having said that, it was magical. Playing in the EPL was a dream, I have great memories but I’m also very happy to be at Feyenoord. We’ll see what pans out.

Feyenoord’s pre-season looked ok, with some good, average and bad games / results. The first test was the match vs PSV for the Johan Cruyff Shield. Feyenoord won. And that win might have thrown some magic dust in the eyes of the fan, as Feyenoord didn’t play too well.

Reaction-football. Low pace, never great in possession and quite lucky not to concede. Although they did get the better chances towards the end of the match.

But goalie Bijlow made the difference and Feyenoord had another trophy.

The real test would be the away game against the orange coloured Trencin, for the Europa League. A game in which Gio van Bronckhorst had to trust his youngster for a result. Haps is injured for a spell already, as is goalie Vermeer. Ayoub is injured, Jorgensen as well, Van Persie wasn’t fit enough and St Juste couldn’t start either, while Vilhena was still suspended.

With these big name players missing, Gio hoped for his young talents to step up to the plate.

And sadly, their 4-0 bashing vs Trencin will dominate this post and the week ahead, as they played a dreadful game. Yes, also Bijlow, Van Beek, Vente and Amrabat… Naive, lacking in energy and leadership… Just shallow and clumsy and lacklustre.

Which will give Gio enough headaches for sure. With Van Persie in the team, or Jorgensen, you’d expect leadership, guidance… a player who can sense the danger. But Clasie, Van Beek, Berghuis and Toornstra weren’t capable of bringing some much needed grit to the team.

At home, next week, it is still possible for Feyenoord to do the heroic. Which would boost everyone sensationally of course. But, the odds aren’t good.

At the same time, it could be a blessing in disguise. With Ajax most likely reaching the CL after doing well away vs Liege (2-2) and PSV in the CL, it seems Feyenoord could benefit from a Europe-less season… One must always hope.

And who knows, with New Zealander Ryan Thomas making a late move from PEC Zwolle to PSV Eindhoven, the competition (Ajax and PSV) is getting stronger, while Feyenoord might still lose some players (Vilhena, Jorgensen, Berghuis, Van Beek).

The main issue I see for Feyenoord is their lack of will, their lack of real desire. The Must-Win mentality that Ajax always had and PSV most definitely will have even more of now Van Bommel is in charge. I fear Feyenoord will have to go for the third place. Ajax and PSV will fight for the title I suppose…

As for the rest: Heerenveen lost some quality but do have a new coach in Adriaanse adept Jan Olde Riekerink (my old school mate) and the signing of Rodney Kongolo, from Man City (former Feyenoord talent).

FC Utrecht will be a contender again, as per usual, as will Vitesse, under Russian coach Sloetsky. I do expect something from FC Groningen this coming season, in all honesty and I hope PEC Zwolle can keep on overachieving.

AZ still has to prove it to the fans, with their two threats up front – Weghorst and Jahanbaksh – gone. The new signings haven’t done it so far for the Alkmaar club but with Stengs on the way back and many great young talents, you can rest assured Van de Brom will have a goodlooking team and will battle for a place up top.

So, your turn guys… What do you think we can expect from this Eredivisie season?

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by Jan

New Season: Ajax

With the World Cup behind us, we’re going to look ahead to the new season. Focus on the top 3, initially and some of the upcoming talents in Holland and abroad (Dutch talents, obviously).

NOTE: I started this post way before the first CL match vs Sturm Graz and ended up finishing it after the match…

Ajax won, 2-0. Good game. Ziyech in top form. Huntelaar should have scored. And Ten Hag was actually happy to be able to say: “We played good today, and we can actually play much better even!”.

Was good to see Daley Blind make his come-back with the crowd loudly chanting the “Daley is Coming Home” anthem…

Anyway, the new season….

Starting at Ajax, which made a bold statement this transfer window and is probably not finished with it even. Some will say the Velvet Revolution of JC has ended and is buried now. I don’t think so. I think Cruyff’s statement were misunderstood.

Yes, he said “use ex-players in management, like at Bayern” but that doesn’t mean any combination of ex-players will work… Clearly Jonk did an amazing job at Ajax, but clashed with Bergkamp, just like Peter Bosz and eventually Marc Overmars did. Get the right guys in, and it will work. He also said “use Academy talents” but JC never said “use them exclusively”. A misunderstanding. His beloved Barca, the role model now for Ajax, doesn’t just use Academy talents. Rakitic, Jordy Alba, Suarez, Neymar, Cillesen, Dembele, all players signed for a serious fee. Not developed at Barca, but making the Barca squad stronger and better balanced.

It seems Overmars and Van der Sar have finally convinced the Board of Ajax that – after 4 years without a trophy (only a respectable EL final spot), it is time to spend some money from the savings account on some real improvements on the pitch. Sure, Ajax spend 30mio euros or more on a new Academy complex, money well spent. But with the likes of Kluivert and very likely Ziyech leaving, better players were needed to bring Ajax ahead of Feyenoord and PSV again.

And with the signing of two EPL players in Tadic and Daley Blind, Ajax gave a strong signal. They also got once-upon-a-time talent Labyad to Amsterdam (developed at PSV and back in the Dutch top after a detour via Portugal, Vitesse and FC Utrecht) and youthful prospect Per Schuurs.

And if indeed Frenkie de Jong and De Ligt would go, Ajax will keep on shopping for sure. I think both De Jong and De Ligt will have to cost at least 30 mio euros each and I’m also sure Overmars will have a list of replacements ready.

Ajax means business again! They said goodbye to Bergkamp protege Marcel Keizer (and Bergkamp himself) and placed their faith in the hands of Guardiola adept Erik ten Hag.

The former FC Utrecht coach about last season.

How do you judge your first 4 months at Ajax?

Well, I think the overall sentiment is not that great. But I rather not judge myself publically, that is the job of Ajax’ management. We are not happy, as we didn’t win the title. Full stop. Ajax wants to win the title, always. So if you don’t reach that goal, it’s not good enough. It’s that simple. We were also kicked out of Europe and the national cup pretty early on, so it was not a great season. But, it wasn’t all bad. We do need to be nuanced about our judgement.

What nuances?

Well, the tragedy with Nouri has been underrated. This is not something you shake off in 3 months. And when I signed on, Kasper Dolberg got seriously injured. Huntelaar missed a number of games too, and then we lost Frenkie de Jong, Sinkgraven, Viergever and Cerny as well. To mention some positives: we created the most oppportunities, but we failed to finish them off. We allowed the least opportunities to the opponent and we conceded the least goals. These are important building blocks moving forward. We created 30 big chances more than PSV, for instance. Our effectiveness was a problem. A killer in the box like Huntelaar missed more chances in this last season than all seasons before, figuratively speaking.

But excuses don’t count

They’re not excuses. Without the injured players, we should have won these matches too, but if you do analyse where you stand, you’ll have to mention these things.

The PSV away game was crucial.

Indeed. We were 7 points behind. We could have turned it around there, I’m convinced. We played for the win, playing 1 v 1 at the back. We had 3 major chances in the early stage of the game, but didn’t score. PSV got a chance, they scored. We were chasing the game after that and couldn’t get the goal. But, apart from Utrecht away and PSV away, we won every match. Sadly, so did PSV.”

Was that the Champions’ gen?

Yes, you saw it with Feyenoord last season as well. PSV could play with their fixed team most matches. Their list of injuries was minimal. And we lacked that bit of luck. We hit post and bar most times last season. Don’t get me wrong, PSV won the title rightfully and deservedly, but it was much closer than it seems. We did not have a terrible season. We got to 79 points. That is normally enough to win the title. The last four times Ajax won the title, they collected less points.”

Some people say you have too many tactical chores and tasks for the players.

It all starts with you, the coach, getting to know the make up of the players. Their characters and personalities are leading. And it takes time before you have that insight. And you, the coach, need to adept to that. What is it the group needs, how do you reach the individual players. I think I did well in the past, offering players the tools they need to shine. Just think about Marko Arnautovic, Eljero Elia, Quincy Promes, Zakaria Labyad, Nacer Barazite, Yassin Ayoub, Deniz Türüç…all creative players who excelled under my guidance. Hakik Ziyech the second season half, was tremendous. Neres played his part.

What aspects do you want to see improvements?

All Ajax players ooze talent. But where it comes down to physical strength, mental strength and tactical intelligence, we need to improve and develop. That is where we lose games, in particular against stronger teams. At times we lack a sense of urgency to win games. Or to recognise danger. Take that first PSV goal, against us. It took one throw in and we’re opened up. And it happened 3 days before that match on training as well! And it happened in the finals of the Europa League vs Man United! It’s not a new thing. And it needs to be dealt with. And against Man United, it was our throw in!! It’s also experience I suppose, which is why we need to buy experience. Talent alone is not enough.

Where do you think Dutch football and thus also Ajax, needs to make big steps?

The so-called turnaround moments. In international football, that is the key moment, more and more. Not just defensively, also in terms of “what do we do when we win the ball back?”. At Ajax it is usually “winning the ball back, and keeping possession”. But I want to see them take the advantage of the game being open. Play the killer pass, make the killer run, right when the opponent is out of balance. When I left FC Utrecht, they were leader of the team scoring a goal within 4 passes after re-possessing the ball. Ajax was somewhere in the mid range. That needs to chance, as those are the moments where you can take full advantage. There is not football nation where the ball goes as often from central defender to central defender. Possession is the goal, it seems. And we need to practice and train to change that around.

Ajax has started qualification campaigns for the Champions League early almost every season but never qualifies because the squad is still in development. That will need to change.

“Well, we started well. We signed Labyad early, we have Tadic and Blind. I think we paid a lot for Blind and he might have been less expensive later in the transfer window, but we want to be as strong as possible come the CL qualification game. We can’t have players being signed by other clubs in mid July and Ajax still trying to find replacements. I want to be able to work with the squad as soon as possible. This World Cup isn’t helping of course, but we’re not the only ones who have that problem”

Are you happy to be able to start the new season from the start, instead of taking over mid-way?

Yes of course. Last season was a difficult one for the club. The focus this season will be on winning, on trophies and results. And to entertain the fans. When you missed winning trophies for four seasons, it’s too long a time. No debate.

Dujan Tadic is quite a signing for Ajax. The 30 year old Serbian artist was signed as a replacement for Hakim Ziyech. But, for all we know, they both might be playing in the same team, that wouldn’t be too bad… Neres, Huntelaar, Tadic up front, Ziyech, De Jong and Van de Beek in midfield… Wow.  The former Groningen and Twente player was always a target for Ajax. And vice versa.

Tadic grew up with family members telling him about the great 1974 Oranje, and stories about Cruyff, Neeskens, Krol and Rep. And young Dujan always wanted to don the Ajax jersey.

When Southampton came kocking some 4 seasons back, Frank de Boer wanted to sign the forward but the then-Ajax board put their foot down. No big money signings!

Now, with Ajax’ kitty filled to the max, Overmars and Van der Sar are allowed to spend. Hence the come-back of Daley Blind and the finally the signing of Tadic.

Tadic: “This is a dream come true for me. Some people have romantic ideas around Barcelona, or Liverpool… For me, it was always Ajax. This is one of the biggest clubs on the planet. I’m proud to finally be here.”

And Daley Blind… he’s now the most expensive signing for Ajax ever. The homeboy who started at a young age at Ajax and almost was written off when he struggled to be recognised for the first team is coming home from Man United. There was interest from other EPL teams, from Spain, Italy, but Daley was never about the money, the fame and fortune.

Daley: “I had options, but none of them were really concrete. It was still early of course, but I had my wishes… Playing every week, playing in a style that suits me, with a coach that thinks about football like I do, in a city/country that appeals to me… and when Ajax came I realised that Ajax would tick all the boxes. I actually look forward to being close to friends and family. So when Ajax wanted to do business I decided to go for it. It feels 100% right.”

But you could have gone to another big club in Europe?

Daley: “Maybe yes, but there is always uncertainty about your position, and there is the language, the cultural changes… I am ready to start a family and I also want to be fully in the picture for the national team, so… this is the logical thing to do. And don’t worry, I am only 28 years old, in the prime of my career so I come back to Ajax to win trophies, to play Champions League football… Not to start thinking about retirement, hahaha.”

Marc Overmars, Ajax has changed tactics? Decided to go for quality, no matter the price tag?

“Well, we always go for quality, but yes, in the past we were more patient, wanted to use the talents more, but if you look at the results in the last seasons, it didn’t pay off well enough. Not winning the title is always an option, when you have clubs like PSV and Feyenoord in your league, but never qualifying for the Champions League via the pre-qualifying games… that hurts. And it takes experience and smarts for those games. Talent is not enough. The mix needs to be right. This time, we had some good options on our radar, and we were able to sign them.”

Tadic was brought in for Ziyech, but he is still in Amsterdam.

“Well yes, but don’t make a mistake: if Hakim doesn’t leave this summer, we’ll be very happy. I can see Tadic and Ziyech in one team, why not? Hakim wants to move only if the total picture is good for him. If the ideal club doesn’t present itself, he’ll probably stay. And why not?”

Is Ajax done buying now?

“Depends. The transfer window is still open for a while, there is interest for Frenkie de Jong of course, for De Ligt, and Ziyech might find his ideal new club, so who knows. We just wanna make sure we are ready for the Champions League now and strong enough to sustain us through the season to win the title. It’s been too long now, we need to win silverware.”

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