Tag: Van de Beek

by Jan

Matthijs De Ligt: The Wonder

Matthijs De Ligt. Dutch Delight. The Wonder. There will be more nicknames for him, for sure. The most discussed player of the Netherlands after Frenkie signed for Barcelona. Everyone wanted to know where Matthijs would move to. Every club wanted him. Would he follow Frenkie to Barca, or did Matthijs have his own dream club?

Well, clearly he did. The youngest Ajax skipper to win a trophy, to play Champions League knew exactly where he wanted to go to. And he told his agent: “Get me a deal there. But keep it all secret until after the Nations League finals. I want to focus on football and will announce my future after.”

Ajax did well in replacing both players by the way and they added more silverware by beating PSV 2-0 in the Johan Cruyff Schaal this weekend. The start of the season. With PSV somewhat pressed and stressed as they play a key match on Tuesday again vs Basel for the Champions League.

Both teams still couldn’t field the strongest teams, with Ziyech, Tagliafico, Mazraoui and Neres still not fully match fit. PSV was cautious with Lozano and Bruma. The result? A weird game, with a very early Ajax goal (Dolberg) taking advantage of a PSV defensive error, PSV playing decent but lacking oomph and missing that brilliance in the final third. Some discussion points too with Jorrit Hendrix getting away with murder and a superb goal by Man of the Match Daley Blind which was contested due to an alleged foul in the build up. But the ref didn’t budge and allowed the goal, making it Daley’s game. The son of Danny played in the Frenkie role and did ever so well.

De Ligt is gone, long live Perr Schuurs

Another name to remember is Perr Schuurs, the tall central defender demonstrated pure class on the ball and might well be the next Ajax defender moving on to bigger things. Schuurs came from Fortuna Sittard a summer ago and worked under the radar on his speed of execution and his build up pass. He demonstrated to be courageous in the challenges and his build up play was excellent!

Finding strong, powerful central defenders is not easy. It’s probably the toughest position on the pitch (arguably). You need to be tall, fast, be able to read the game, lead the defence and act from a tactical perspective, you need to be tough, you need to be able to head a ball, you need balls to put your body on the line but also the skills to set up that attack… the through ball, the dribble, the long pass… All these aspects. And Matthijs de Ligt has it all in spades.

And when you can find him as a product of the famous Ajax school and he’s only 19 years old, well…. Break that piggy bank and sign him!

Man City, Man United, Liverpool and all other EPL clubs decided to let it go, once they found out PSG, Juve and Barca were highly keen to go to the max.

Barca wasn’t able to compete and walked away. It was between PSG and Juve, so it seems, but after signing for the Grand Ol’ Dame De Ligt declared it was always Juventus for him. “I have been a Juve fan for years. The jersey, their history, the players who played there. And as a defender, I am really in awe of Italian defenders and the way Juventus can dominate matches on the basis of that. As a kid, I had a Man U jersey with 7, for C Ronaldo, so the fact that he’s there made it even better. ”

Playing and practicing with C Ronaldo is the cherry on the cake for De Ligt, but the central defender says that Ronaldo’s courting of him after the Juve – Ajax game didn’t really impact his decision. “Hahaha, I actually didn’t know what he said, to be honest. It all went so quick. Only later did I realise he was telling me to join Juve, haha. But I had made my mind up already. I was keen to go to Turin.”

His start with the Italian champs might not have been too great. Spurs took the win (again from De Ligt’s perspective) and De Ligt even made an own goal in the pre-season but just like with his Oranje debut (making two howlers), he will definitely get up again and soldier on.

As all media will tell you everything you need to know about De Ligt today, we’ll go into the photo books and discuss his roots.

Matthijs was born in Leidschendam (closer to Rotterdam than Amsterdam – sic) but the family moved to Abcoude (just south of Amsterdam) when he was 1 year old, due to his dad’s work. He’s the oldest of three kids. His younger brother Wouter would become his best mate.

The De Ligt family was not your typical football family. Mum and dad played hockey and tennis and when 5 years old, Matthijs took up tennis and ended up being a tremendous talent and would become one of the club’s best youth players. “He had a natural eye for the ball and good reflexes. It was when a school mate had a football match and Matthijs decided to go and watch that he got the football bug,” his dad Frank says.

Matthijs played 3 years for FC Abcoude and was a different type of kid than others. “He wasn’t one of those players that hogged the bal or tried to dribble all the way to the other goal. He played defence and he passed the ball. He was strong already and had a good shot for a young kid. When FC Abcoude had a game vs Ajax (E-youth), the Ajax youth coach immediately saw his talent and made a play for him. It was bound to happen,” says the Abcoude youth coach now.

Initially, Ajax hesitated. Matthijs had some baby fat still and was heavier than the other kids. But when he dribbled across the pitch and fired a rocket in the top corner – against Ajax again – the Ajax youth coordinator predicted: “This kid is going to go far!” and Ajax invited him in.

Dad Frank: “He had 4 or 5 practice sessions with Ajax and we got the call that they wanted him.”

Matthijs was not your typical Amsterdam street kid. He was shy, quiet. He distanced himself a bit from the bravado types and just did his thing. When the youth coach wanted to make him the captain of his team, Matthijs declined. He just wanted to do this thing.

Dad Frank: “He was only focusing on the football itself. He was always with a ball and he was always training. He was working out at home with weights, he would come up with skills practices in the back yard with his little brother. Always perfecting his game.”

Matthijs before his growth spurt (next to goalie)

His dedication and focus were rare. “He never really went out with friends and was always happy to be alone. He likes structure and patterns to be fall back on. And he always got agitated if we started to ask too many questions. Asking him if all was well, and all this. He loves to be left alone to deal with things. When he turned 18 and could get his drivers license (and as a result a lease car from Ajax) he said he didn’t want to. He wasn’t interested in cars. “I want to focus on football, this driving lessons thing is distracting. It will come later!”. Matthijs knew exactly what he wanted.

At Ajax, in the youth system, most kids would be on their iPhone or play PlayStation games. Not Matthijs. One could call him old-fashioned. An old soul maybe. Matthijs played cards. Like all the stars from the past (Suurbier, Krol, Cruyff, Neeskens), Matthijs loves klaverjassen. And he was always different like that. If a kid was bullied at school, he wouldn’t join in with the group, but protect and support the weaker kid. Old fashioned values.

He was already mature when he was 15 years old and his character was definitely further polished by his Ajax adventures.

Matthijs is loath of the attention football players get. He wants to be normal. He wants to be able to go to a restaurant with his family and just have a nice dinner. So when several agents and managers started knocking on the door of the De Ligt family, dad Frank made a move. “I think we all realised that all the wonderful opportunities would come in due time. We wanted Matthijs to be coached or mentored by a man with an Ajax heart, someone who was about the art of defending. Barry Hulshoff was our man!”.

Barry Hulshoff, former Ajax central defender in the Cruyff era. Dutch international too (but injured during the World Cup 1974). But mostly, a decent human being. Dad Frank called Hulshoff and since 2014, Barry meets with Matthijs once a month. Not to talk money, contracts, percentages or cars, but talking about match situations, about defending, about preparation for a game.

Hulshoff: “There was a lot to work on. Little things, ok, but enough to work on to make his much better. Examples…? We worked on his speed on the first meters. His explosiveness. I found him an athletics coach who worked on this. Also, his long pass with his left. It’s key to be able to play the cross pass with left and right. What a weapon. And the key thing for me: being able to execute a sliding tackle with his left and right. He conceded a penalty vs Volendam 2 with Ajax 2, when he had to tackle with his left, but he tried to do it with his right. Penalty! Also, you need to be able to see when you need to go to ground for a sliding and when you don’t. And Matthijs has this down pat for 90% I think. He’s very intuitive.”

Left: with little bro and right with his family a couple of years ago

Hulshoff was key in measuring De Ligt’s progress. Measuring body fat, muscle strength and preparing him for life at the top, as a defender.

Barry: “I also let him decide and organise a lot of things for himself. When he’s injured, I want him to research it himself, to take responsibility. He is very good with criticism too, he simply wants to get better and better. Losing is something he hates and when he was in Ajax 2 he started to become more vocal. Coaching team mates or scolding them if they screwed up. The skipper was showing up for work.”

The new Juve central defender is also a historian. Hulshoff: “Matthijs is a real Ajax fan. I gave him a book about the first success period of the club, from 1966 till 1973. He studied it in details and was able to tell me more about the matches than I knew. Line ups, who gave the assists, in what minute did who score… And I played in those games!!”

Matthijs remembers his period in the Ajax youth really well. “My first season in the E youth was great. The level was much better than what I was used to and I played with lads that made it big, like Justin Kluivert, Donyell Malen and Bobby Adekanye. I played midfield in those days. We played some international tournaments even, in Spain and in the Czech Republic. Was cool.”

With a laugh: “They called me Dikkie, in those days. Fatty. Look at my face, I had some surplus fat, hahaha. I had this tremendous growth spurt at some stage and I was supposed to be the best player and the leader. I was also going to high school then and the pressure was on. I didn’t feel to comfortable about it all, it was quite tough, but I came through alright.”

“The C1 team was really really good. I think we had the best Dutch youth player on every position. We played the cup final against PSV and Bakboord was usually our central defender, but he was injured, so the coach put me there. We won 4-1 and I never played midfield since.”

In 2015/2016 I got the “Talent of the Future” award at Ajax. That started off a lot of things. My name became known. Media started to see me and I was also the best player of the Future Cup. This is when I started to realise that I was on a good trajectory…

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by Jan

Courageous brilliant Ajax crumbles under pressure

Well, I REALLY needed to take a day extra before writing this… It was such a rollercoaster with all these amazing emotions floating through the body… From sheer exuberance (first half) to fear, horror, terror, disbelief in the second half and complete and utter shock at the final whistle.

What.The.F.Happened?

What was I watching?

How was this possible. Was Tottenham so amazing? Were they so good? Did we just see another English club smashing it, like Wijnaldum Liverpool smashed Barca?

You know what? NO!

Ajax didn’t lose against Spurs. They lost against Ajax. Ajax was Ajax toughest opponent.

And the boys who became men suddenly looked like boys again.

I was distraught. I was disappointed. And I was angry.

Not at Moura. Not at Pochetino. I was angry at Tadic. At Ziyech. At Ten Hag. Schone and Onana.

What on Earth were they thinking???

I will not give you a clear match report or anything. Forget about that.

Ok, I will. But briefly. Open Game. End to End. Ajax on the counter, Tadic forcing a corner. Great block (and terrible defending Spurs) and De Ligt heads 1-0. Great.

Spurs pushing probing shooting etc but another break got Ziyech in position. Magnificent left foot. Magnificent goal: 2-0.

Second half, yadda yadda Llorente yadda yadda long balls yadda yadda route 1 yadda yadda fight football.

So in the second half, Ajax has free kick. Blind and De Ligt move up. The rest defence looks vulnerable. Ball is turnaround, long ball is passed on to Moura. Schone doesn’t have the speed. Onana decides to stay in his goal. Easy goal. 2-1

Hmm… Was it really necessary to push so many players forward? For a free kick with a bad angle to get a real goal scoring opportunity?

Ajax is rattled and 2 mins later, their whole defence is split apart, with two Spurs players free in the 6 yard box. Onana saves miraculously but Schone decides to kick the ball away from Onana’s hands, giving Moura another opportunity. The Brazilian has 5 (!!) deft touches in the box before he buries it. WHAT? 2-2

And then: Ajax starts to play again, and Ziyech gets opportunities, Tadic too. But to no avail.

So with 2 minutes on the clock in extra time. 2 minutes! TWO!! Tadic decides to go for glory and the top corner. Curling it in. But the ball is wide and high. Lloris bring the ball back into the field and with a hail mary, the ball ends up with the Brazilian yet again. De Ligt is wrong footed and out of balance, he can’t block the shot. Tagliafico should have put his body on the line but stayed on his fee: 2-3.

End.Of.Story. End.of.Dream. What a bloody waste, what a missed opportunity.

Even when Ajax mourns the loss, their positioning is still great!

And YES: of course, reaching the semis was great. And yes, we all love these guys. And yes, they entertained us to the hilt. And yes, De Ligt, Ziyech, Neres, Van de Beek, Mazraoui, they will all get fat deals somewhere and some stage. Sure.

But they could and should have reached the finals and they can only blame themselves.

Erik ten Hag might have done better. Experienced Tadic and Blind should have managed the game better. Ziyech should have scored. Onana should have raced out of his area with that first Spurs goal. All true. But at the end of the day, Ajax gave it away.

And now, Ajax has two league games to win. And they will have to win them, otherwise their season – despite the national cup – will be a big disappointment in terms of silverware.

Sadly, this Ajax will not win a Champions League anytime soon. It’s likely that De Ligt and De Jong and Ziyech will leave. I do have faith in Eijting, I think he is a great player. He will take Frenkie’s spot I think, but there will not a second De Ligt of course.

Thanks for the memories Ajax, but really… you did end up breaking our hearts…

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by Jan

“Ajax’s biggest game ever”

We love hyperboles… We actually witnessed one in action yesterday. With Stevie G watching on from the stands in Anfield, the man who led his team to the CL win in Istanbul, after being 3-0 down at half time… That vibe was present in Liverpool yesterday and must have inspired the Reds like nothing else. And only a few people realised that we are watching a huge shift in hierarchy in world football. After many many CL finals, we will see a finals without either Messi or Ronaldo. Their reign ended. The new super stars are called Van Dijk. De Ligt. De Jong. And they will reign supreme in the next decade.

Tactics won yesterday. Tactics, Klopp’s to be precise, in combination with the typical English gung ho mentality and energy. And how is Wijnaldum a typical example of Liverpool’s heavy metal football. Gini runs, tackles, pushes, scores, jumps and passes… What a game, what a team! From their goalie to their right back to their Egyptian pharao Mo Salah. Respect!

And yes, Tottenham Hotspur will be inspired by the Liverpool feat. Sure. But it will also have done something with Ajax. Don’t worry.

Ten Hag calls it the biggest game in Johan Cruyff Arena ever. That is probably not true. But for him and his team, it will be true. And for all the fans tomorrow as well. It will be the first time in 23 years that Ajax might get into the CL finals. Two years ago, they reached the Europa League finals under Bosz, which was quite a feat already, but the prestige of the CL finals is unprecedented. In this century, no other Dutch club reached this far. In 1996 Ajax lost the finals vs Juve on penalties and that was it.

Should Ajax win the CL, they will add a cool 22.5M euros to their bank account. They’ll play the World Cup for clubs too which will bring them around 3.5M euros. All in all, this season Ajax could write 42.5M euros for reaching the group stages of the CL. And don’t forget, Ajax started all this early in the season as qualifiers… Ajax will earn around 100M in total as a result of their European adventure.

Dutch football in general will benefit greatly as Ajax will earn heaps of coefficiency points, which will result in an easier entry in European tournaments in the future.

What can we expect tomorrow?

It seems Ajax’ squad is top fit, with the exception of David Neres who has some slight issues (but will play).

Mazraoui is back in full fitness and his tremendous turn as a sub – in combi with Veltman’s not so great game – will probably mean he starts as right back again.

“When you have the ball you can avoid getting into duels. In the first phase of the first half, we demonstrated how this works” – Erik Ten Hag at the presser

This quote above tells us how Ten Hag will want to play. The same as he did in the first 30 mins at White Hart Lane. With Ziyech and Neres coming in tight. With Tadic dropping to midfield at times. With Frenkie de Jong dropping next to Blind and Veltman moving inside to offer more options. And zipping the ball from foot to foot.

“We didn’t anticipate their changes well enough and as a result it became fight football,” – Erik ten Hag on Ajax TV

Ajax failed to have enough players around target man Llorente to grab the second ball and entered the arena for fight where avoiding and using the space to play out of trouble was a wiser option.

“After the break we managed to set the team up to deal with Spurs. Defensively, we were well positioned and never really got into trouble” – Erik ten Hag for Veronica TV

In the second half, Neres and Ziyech don’t press together. Ziyech presses the central defenders while Neres drops back to support his midfield. Matthijs de Ligt follows Llorente to challenge the long balls while De Jong drops back to fill the space in the centre of defence. He also does this when Blind follows the wandering Moura.

When Spurs has longer spells of possession, Ziyech and Neres drop back as wide wingbacks. It’s telling that Hakim Ziyech had the most successful tackles of all Ajax players (6).

“We failed to execute our game in possession. We should have had the peace to keep the ball longer. There was so much space on the other end of the pitch and we should have used this for the change pass and to let Spurs run ragged. In those situations, you can pounce.” – Erik ten Hag for Veronica TV

Ajax sees most space available for the full backs and Ajax prefers to use Veltman, as Tagliaficio would use the space Frenkie de Jong likes to dribble into. The plan was for Ajax to use the ball on one flank and then use the cross pass to utilise the space on the other end. Ajax fails to do this. Until Mazraoui comes for Schone. The right back (and former playmaker) constantly finds space behind Eriksen, like with the spell which resulted in Neres shot on the post.

This will be the key lesson for Ten Hag: when Spurs uses the diamond in midfield, the interplay between Ajax’ holding midfielder and full backs allows them a route out of trouble. This will probably prove to be a convincing response to this Tottenham Hotspur version.

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by Jan

Ajax swinging; Ajax fighting….

It’s as if it is the most normal thing in the world. Discussing Ajax’ performance at CL level. How quickly do we get used to this success… Away vs Spurs, the #3 in the EPL, with a budget 6 times that of Ajax, we all think it’s a disappointment that Ajax “only” won by one goal difference…

How different life was, a mere year ago. Or two years ago. When Ajax struggled to get through the qualifiers and Oranje struggled to get into a big tournament.

Today, Virgil van Dijk is considered the best EPL player. Frenkie de Jong is considered the most exciting midfielder in Europe. Oranje is up to win the Nations League this summer and Holland is oozing talent again, everywhere you look.

The 0-1 vs Spurs in London was indeed a disappointment. As Spurs was suffering from the loss of Kane, Lamela, Dier, Winks and in particular Son and simply not in a good spell, the expectations in Holland were that Ajax would win this easily, 0-3.

But the game was a very interesting lesson in tactics, for Ajax mainly, as Spurs was able to stop the footballing onslaught Ajax brought to them, and found a way to contain Ajax, without becoming threatening themselves, by the way.

But this game will have taught the young Ajax team a lot! So thanks, Spurs!

The first Phase – From start to minute 21

Ten Hag wasn’t sure how Spurs would start. They can play different systems, and the 5-at-the-back system was one of the systems Ten Hag was prepared for. Spurs used this to abysmal effect vs Liverpool, so most people felt it was unwise to start like this vs Ajax, but that is what Pochettino ended up doing. Ten Hag was not too concerned: “I believe Blind, De Jong, Tadic and Ziyech will be able to recognise what they need to do once we start the game.”

It is Daley Blind who is gesticulating and pointing from minute 1, when he recognised what kind of intent Spurs brings to the game. Eriksen will be De Jong’s counterpart, while Llorente and Moura will put pressure on Blind and De Ligt, keeping Tagliafico and Veltman free to build up. Once the Ajax backs have possession, Spurs springs the trap to push up. Ten Hag was prepared for this. He actually discussed this in details before the game: “When Spurs play with 5 at the back and they start pressing our backs, we will find a lot of space behind their defence.”

Ajax found the easy solution. Both De Jong and Schone would make themselves available for the defenders to play out and at times, even Veltman would squeeze into midfield to allow for the outball. Tottenham starts to doubt their action plan and Ajax takes control of the game.

The openings goal of Van de Beek has everything contained in it: Ajax control of the centre of the pitch, wih Veltman pushing inside. Ziyech attracting players to him, allowing for a 1 v 1 elsewhere on the pitch. When Neres is found with feel, Schone can keep the ball under pressure finding Ziyech who slots the ball into Donny’s feet who is just onside. A little dummy follows, he sits Lloris down and it’s 0-1.

The second Phase – from minute 22 to 45

When Tadic is injured on the pitch, Pochettino uses the time to instruct his players to abandon the 5-3-2 and Danny Rose is pushing into midfield. Hakim Ziyech was enjoying a lot of free space and with this move, the space in midfield becomes sparse. Tottenham also starts to play more direct balls. Llorente finds Daley Blind and he is the target man for the long balls. The tall Spaniard wins 7 aerial battles and allows Spurs a way out from trouble.

Minute 46 – 90

Ajax has demonstrated to be quite comfortable under pressure. They showed this vs Real Madrid. They can keep the pitch small and compact and play themselves out of trouble with their quick passing. At times a long ball towards the speedy Neres or Van de Beek can work as well. But Spurs forces Ajax into fighting mode. Tottenham puts more pressure on the ball and Ajax decides to avoid risk but to play a compact defensive game, absorbing the pressure and counting on a break. Even Neres and Ziyech are putting in a shift.

This image above shows what happened. The Spurs forwards make it hard for Ajax to play out from the back, and Onana is forced to play the long ball. Tottenham does have a lot of trouble creating any real chances though. The siege of the Ajax half doesn’t really result in open chances. And Pochettino simply doesn’t have the options on the bench for a breakthrough.

The best chance in the second half is actually for Ajax. Nazraoui, not 100% fit, is back in the game for Schone, who was spent. Nazraoui, a former playmaker, knows how to play midfield and when Ziyech puts pressure on Alderweireld he sends Mazraoui deep, who bombs past Eriksen and drives into the box. Tadic does get a chance from the same spot that got him his goal vs Madrid but the false striker decides to square to Neres, who mishits the ball a tad, and hits the post.

And thus, we saw two Ajax faces. The Ajax that can swing, dominate and tear opponents apart with blistering football and the Ajax that can battle and fight.

This shrewdness might well be another skill in the toolbox for Ajax, to achieve that historical ticket for a Champions League finals…

Elsewhere in Europe, Virgil van Dijk had to concede 3 goals, while his team played a very good game! But where luck and skill worked in tandem for Barca, Liverpool hit the post and missed their key opportunities to surprise the Spanish champs, even with Wijnaldum as false striker…

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by Jan

Ajax’ Delight with Ajax’ De Ligt

I have to admit, I truely don’t know where to start… This blog is a Dutch National Team blog, and your humble blogger is a Feyenoord fan, but I am drooling with glee when watching this Ajax play. And I am not alone in it. The whole world watches and the whole world seems delighted to see what they can do!

Johan will be resting in his final resting place with a grand smile on his face…

You probably know all the stats better than me… It’s been 22 years since Ajax last was in a CL semis finals. It has been a long time since Ajax beat Juve, etc etc.

And back in the day, teams were only allowed to have 3 foreign players!! So any team was forced to have domestic talent in their team, and could only shop for 3 starting spots.

Today, Man City, Real Madrid, Juve, Bayern, they could technically buy all the best players from anywhere and present them as the “local team”. And still, Ajax manages to do what they do on a meagre budget (compared to the big boys) and with 6 home grown players in their line up (De Ligt, Frenkie, Donny, Mazraoui, Veltman, Blind)…

It is just mindblowing!

And I didn’t write a post on the home match vs Juve (I did plan to do so, but life is getting in the way at the moment…moving house, flu attacks, internet dramas, work, etc)…

I was quite positive about Ajax’ chances coming into the game, like I was vs Real Madrid. But my positivity quickly evaporated when I saw how Ajax started!!

They were completely off their game. They were overwhelmed with the tremendous tenacity Juve demonstrated, and some of them clearly were suffering from tension in the body, with balls bouncing off feet, passes not arriving and even Mr Cool (Frenkie) dribbling senselessly into cul-de-sacs…

Onana got it wrong early (Can pressing onto him) and with Mazraoui having to be subbed and then C Ronaldo’s goal after 20 minutes and the disarray in Ajax’ defence (De Ligt bumping Veltman out of the way), I truly thought our national pride was imploding like never before.

(From L) Ajax’s Dutch defender Daley Blind, Ajax’s Brazilian forward David Neres, Ajax’s Danish midfielder Lasse Schone, Ajax’s Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt (Rear), Ajax’s Dutch defender Joel Veltman and Ajax’s Dutch midfielder Donny van de Beek celebrate with fans defeating Juventus in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg football match Juventus vs Ajax Amsterdam on April 16, 2019 at the Juventus stadium in Turin. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP) (Photo credit should read MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP/Getty Images)

Mazraoui is not a defender. He was developed as playmaker in the Ajax youth and as a result is quite comfortable on the left and right of the pitch. Just like Daley Sinkgraven is a midfielder, originally, and Daley hadn’t played a proper match for months on end. Oops.

But… something happened.

I think Ten Hag / Schreuder made some positional changes in the midfield (telling Frenkie and Lasse to guard the back four with a double 6 system (two controlling mids) and pushing Veltman and Mazraoui/Sinkgraven high up on the pitch, to allow Onana/De Ligt/Blind an outlet…

I also believe Juve felt they could take their foot of the gas a bit, leading 1-0.

And I believe Ajax started to play with mentality of “well…we’re out of the competition now, so lets just play for it”…

And magic happened!

A mishit by Ziyech ended up at Van de Beek’s feet and he didn’t lash out like he sometimes does, he simply passed the ball in the goal.

That will have rattled Juve and when Ajax reached the half time break, 1-1, I was getting the feeling that they’d be best positioned to progress. Because conceding another goal wouldn’t change much for Ajax and their game plan.

Alternatively, if Ajax would score the 1-2, Juve would have to score two goals! Those sortathings will get in the players’ heads…

And Ten Hag managed to settle the players’ nerves in the half time break and the second half was all Ajax!

The telling thing for Ajax being their composure on the ball when playing out from defence, finding the right pass, the right run…never hitting it upstream blindly, always with an idea, a though.

And boy, what a chances Ajax got to truly humiliate the Old Lady and score not 1, 2 or 3 but 4 or 5 goals!

1-4 would not have been an outrageous end score. Neres missed a sitter (use your right foot!!), some decision making didn’t end up going well, Schone was unlucky with a dipping free kick and a half volley later on in the game, etc etc…

Ajax even managed a really flowing one touch attack over the right wing, with some composed passing by De Jong, Ziyech, Tadic, sadly not resulting in a super dooper world class goal!

Captain De Ligt was at fault with CR7’s goal, one could say. So the skipper stepped up and paid Juve back after more than an hour’s play.

The corner was kicked by Schone, De Ligt timed well, jumped high and slammed the ball into the corner, in between two Italian defenders. That is a feat for any player, but for a 19 year old kid, it is just incredible.

Ziyech, outstanding in Ajax’ campaign but a tad off his game now even managed a superb goal, curling the ball into the far corner… this would have settled matters but the Moroccan playmaker was 1 toe offside, apparently and the goal was disallowed…

There were some shaky last minutes with Juve pushing for a miracle and when Daley Blind – another Man of The Match performance – seemingly handled the ball in the final minutes, a gasp was audible from the Ajax camp.

But one specific camera angle showed the VAR that the ball didn’t actually hit his arm, but bounced of his chest/core and therefore: no penalty and Ajax was confident it had done the job!

The joy and celebrative eruption was completely warranted, after the game, with a somewhat overweight Marc Overmars performing a class – albeit static – belly slide in front of the fans…

All Ajax players and staff members after the game were in agreement that “yes, Ajax should have scored more goals and taken the opportunities and all that” but the euphoria won vs the criticism of Ajax’ lack of effectiveness…

“Now, we need to get our head in the game again, because next Saturday, it’s FC Groningen!”

Some conclusions:

  • Ajax will be robbed blind this summer, even Ten Hag will be hunted (Schreuder is on his way to become head coach at Wolfsburg)
  • Van de Beek deserves a starting spot in Oranje
  • De Ligt will be the most expensive defender this coming summer (100+ million)
  • Ajax will win this CL
  • Overmars should not do belly flops and ruin the pitch of the opponent

 

Cinematic highlights both games…

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by Jan

Frenkie de Jong’s break through year

2018 was the year of Frenkie’s international break through. A start spot at Ajax, impressive games in the Champions League, a dominant role in the new Oranje and a mega transfer to a European super power looming on the horizon. “I play in the Champions League and so does my manager Ali Dursun.”

It’s a cold December day in 2012. Ali Dursun is at the Willem II youth academy to watch his son Mike play in the D pupils. After that match finishes, the football dad decides to check out the C-team at Willem II to kill the time waiting for his son to get ready to go home. “What I saw there was unbelievable. A blond kid, with 10 on his jersey. The goalie kicked the ball out, that number 10 picked it up out of the air, made a Zidane turn and played no look pass through the eye of the needle to the striker who scored. The striker did well. But the midfielder made all of that happen. I gave my car keys to my wife and said: you go home with Mike, I need to watch this kid.”

Ali Dursun decided to follow the youngster and started a conversation with the dad John and grandpa Jan who were always at the playmaker’s games. Dursun was a local player’s agent and working part time in the courier company of his brother. There was a click. Frenkie de Jong now: “We started to build a bond. Ali became a friend of the family and my confidante. He was there when I was a kid and offered wisdom and guidance. He was never about control, or contracts or money. He really wanted me to succeed. We share everything as he completely gets me, the way I think and I get his way of thinking.”

It’s easy to see 2018 as a perfect year, but Frenkie grabs his phone and shows the interviewer a photo from February. It’s an ankle and on the angle is a knock visible, the size of a tennis ball. Ronald Koeman had plans to invite De Jong for Oranje but the Ajax player (he left Willem II for Ajax when he was 19 years old) missteps at training and does himself in. The first invite for Oranje melted like snow. “Initially I wasn’t too worried but somehow the horror stories of Van Basten and his ankle woes came into my head. I think he was 20 or so when he injured himself (Van Basten aggressively tackled Groningen midfielder Edwin Olde Riekerink but injured his ankle severely which ended his career prematurely before San Marco turned 30). It took a long time to heal. And I started to get really upset.”

Ajax wanted to use the midfielder in the title race but he wasn’t able to get fit in time. “My life revolves around football. Without it, I feel this void. Slowly however, the pain disappeared and I was really relieved that I could participate in this season’s preparation.”

Frenkie remembers the first game he played this season, against Anderlecht in the Olympic stadium. A friendly in July. “I was waiting and working for months to play again and finally I could and I was so bad. I was sooo incredibly bad. Unbelievable. I don’t think I ever played a shit game like this one. Passes went astray. I ended up moving in the wrong spaces. Dribbles were dramatically bad. I wanted to do too much. I was doing so well at practice, but I learned then and there that match fitness and rhythm are real things…”

Last season, Frenkie played 26 games in all competitions. This season, he already played 30 and we’re only half way. The high point? “Without a doubt, my debut in Oranje. It was five months after the initially planned debut but I finally got there. I got onto the pitch in the Sneijder farewell match.. In the Johan Cruyff Arena.” Frenkie got to show his exceptional skills in that match. Ali Dursun can’t control his excitement. “I know Wesley well, and I always hoped one day Sneijder and Frenkie would play together… They did, only for 15 minutes, but still.”

In the matches vs Germany and France, Frenkie demonstrated his qualities and as a rocket established himself as a super target for the big clubs. His breakthrough. Frenkie: “Yes, it feels like that. I think that last year in Holland, most football fans and pundits and media started to recognise my qualities but there was always something like “yeah, cool, fun, but can he do it on the highest level?”. I think I dealt with that question and I have shown myself.”

Frenkie talks like he plays football. Without pressure, free style, no restrictions. The Frenkie de Jong Hype has ceased to be a hype. It’s structural now. The Spanish media lead the dance. For months now, his face graces the cover of the plethora of Spanish sports publications. Frenkie: “The first time I saw it, it was very special. My picture on the Spanish newspaper front page, that was pretty cool. My grandpa was on holiday in Spain and picked up the morning paper with his grandson on the cover. That must have made him proud, hahaha.”

The tremendous media attention and the continuous questions about his future, Frenkie is still as fresh and polite and patient as in the beginning. “Oh, ye it doesn’t phase me at all. I don’t mind it. I don’t mind the attention and I don’t mind talking to the media. Why would I? It’s not hard. You just have a conversation with someone, but this time with a mic involved. You, I’m a positive guy. I try to keep things light. I also don’t want to come across as a puppet or a machine. I try to remain genuine.”

Not a lot phases him but when people started to compare him with Johan Cruyff, he started to push on the brakes. “Come on man, that is such BS. That is the only time when I thought, come on people! Now it’s going over the top. He is the football player of football players, he is God. I mean, comparisons are always ridiculous, but especially with him. Just let me be Frenkie.”

“I don’t mind criticism, and I don’t mind negative comment. Why would I? It’s someone’s opinion. Only when they are factually wrong, I can get a bit antsy. Recently on telly someone claimed I lacked speed. That is definitely not the case. I am the second fasted player in the squad, you know? You don’t seem opponents running away from me. I also recover a lot of balls, statistically. I can see that I have aspects that need improvement though. Don’t get me wrong. My shots from distance are not great. I do train a lot on this, but I still have to show it more. I also need a bit more composure in the box. My long pass needs to be more flat. More speed. And my through pass radius is too short. I need to be able to play that pass over a longer distance and take out more opponents.”

One thing that is not on his list to improve is the risk factor. He tends to take too many risks, people say. Like in the home game vs Bayern Munich. “But I don’t! I don’t ee it as taking risks. Statistically, you can see I hardly ever lose possession. I don’t see it as risks, anyway. For me, it’s normal. Risks are part of football. It’s part of my game. I see it as my role, to try and find the opening. And this is how I made it into Ajax 1 and into Oranje. Should I now play simple? This, what I do, for me is the simple and natural way of playing. When I change, I will become like so many others, what would be the use? I play the way my intuition tells me to.”

Dursun: “Before every game I app Frenkie and tell him: buddy, play your own game, do what you are good at. That is all I send.”

Frenkie: “In the youth teams, I always had coached who wanted me to keep it simple. Play simple. I always nodded and went and did my own thing, hahaha. And usually, it worked out so I never got in trouble. A lot of youth coaches take the freedom and joy out of the game. Deciding to take the non risk pass. Or touch the ball twice and play on. I was never open to that stuff, I merely went on my intuition. In Holland, the positioning / passing game is sacred but we overdo it. A pass square, a back pass, keep possession. No, I want to play forward, I want to take risks and be adventurous. That is who I am as a player.”

Marc Overmars saw Frenkie come on as a sub in an Oranje under 16 match. “I wasn’t there to scout, I was just watching some of our lads. He came on and I remember thinking: whoa, he might need to eat some more steaks for dinner. Thin, thin legs, but his first move on the ball grabbed me. And I took his name and kept following him.”

Frenkie’s girl Mikky, a pro hockey player

Dursun: “Frenkie had some team mates at Willem II who were scouted, like Sam Lammers by PSV and Ould-Chick by Twente. There were clubs for Frenkie as well, also big clubs from England, Germany, Spain, but he wasn’t keen. We decided he would take the normal route in Holland. Stay at Willem II, finish high school, make a move to a big club in Holland.”

PSV felt it had the talent already, but Ajax was simply more pro-active. Frenkie: “I wouldn’t change a thing if I had to do it again. You see, at Willem II, I was the key man in midfield. And as a result, I always received the ball. I think at Ajax in the youth, there is more competition. Also at Willem II, very important, we always were under the kosh. We always had to play stronger teams, basically. And I was a tiny lad. I had to be creative, I had to work on my technique a lot and my speed. The time at Willem II was key for me.”

The partnership between the two is remarkable. They talk rapidly, finish each others sentences and cherish their history, while dealing with the future. Dursun: “It was a busy time, these last couple of months. And Frenkie luckily made it easy for me. He said, tell me which club has interest to talk and if I’m not interested I will let you know. We don’t want to waste anyone’s time and I told those clubs a simple “No, sorry”.

Frenkie: ‘All those clubs, it is quite special and strange. As if I am in a computer game…’

Ali : ‘So we brought the list back, from 10 clubs to 3 and then suddenly another phone call from another big club with questions. And if Frenkie liked that club, well… the list grew again.”

The picture in De Telegraaf of camp De Jong, Ajax and Paris St Germain, meeting in Amsterdam early December, fueling the rumours of a move to PSG

Frenkie: ‘We can’t talk to all of them. I simply can’t make the time. All my energy and focus are with Ajax and I will give that priority always. But it’s also very important to make the right decision.’

Ali : ‘And we need to take it all in, right buddy? The whole picture needs to be right. From A to Z.’

Frenkie: ‘For sure. But still, what is a good choice? You know this in hindsight and I know now already that there are several good choices, but you can only pick one. I only look at the key thing for me: my role and development. Is it a club that plays like I want to play. Do they share my football values? Attack, dominate. And, can I play regularly.”

Ali : ‘The football technical story is leading. Frenkie needs playing time, we don’t want him to be the 5th midfielder in the squad.’

Frenkie: ‘The money involved is insane. The amounts that you hear are preposterous. It’s a lot of money, but it’s not something I can influence. This is between the clubs. It’s supply and demand. I am an Ajax player, so they can set the price. How do they determine this? I am not sure, it’s not based on goals or assists, or passes or whatever. How does this work?’

Ali: ‘Indeed, that is something the clubs sort out between them. And it’s rough. I can see that. It’s like a chess match at top level.”

Frenkie: ‘If I knew where my future was, I would tell you, but in all honesty, I don’t know yet. I still have to make the decision. All stories you read are presumptuous.’

Ali: ‘I think we will decide in the coming weeks. I think Frenkie should focus fully on Ajax in the second season half. It’s football. Winning trophies with Ajax and Oranje.’

Frenkie: ‘Seriously, it doesn’t bother me. When I am playing football, I am not thinking about any thing else. Just play ball. And if people call me about a transfer, I direct them to Ali.’

Ali: ‘A lot is happening of course. The number of agents and managers that tried to speak to Frenkie. Absurd.’

Frenkie: ‘Some people can paint beautiful pictures, haha, but I thank them all in a friendly way and direct them to Ali.”

Ali: ‘They do try to come between us. By making up shit, or tell lies. It’s sad. I don’t mind people trying to contact Frenkie, that is ok. But after he told them to talk to me, some will keep on harrassing Frenkie. That is not on and if that happens, they’ll hear from me.”

Frenkie: “I told Ali many times. We are doing this together. Wherever, whenever, we got to the top together. We are one and remain one, my friend.’

Ali: ‘Frenkie is loyal. He always was. Last year this time, we signed a new deal with Ajax and he knew: whatever happens, I will stay with Ajax for at least 1,5 season. Whatever comes.’

Frenkie: ‘I prefer to do things well, before I do things quick. I know they can go together. Last season, I made it into the first team. This season, I am the most sought after midfielder in Europe. That went really quick. But, we’ll see how it all goes.’

Frenkie orders another ice tea. “But, I want to win silverware with Ajax. This squad is so good and not just good, we are a real team you know. The bond is real. And we have demonstrated how good we are, but still haven’t won anything. We’re fighting on three fronts… Winning the CL might be hard, but we will still try and make a lasting impression. The hunger and desire is huge and the relationship between our staff and the players is top. I read and heard that people say it’s different but that is total hogwash. We are really happy with Erik ten Hag. There is literally no one that can’t work with him or deal with him. And I would have known. He’s simply put a very good coach. And when that criticism came how he was not from Amsterdam…. So what? I am not from Amsterdam! Neither is Hakim, or Tadic, or Onana… It’s so stupid. We want to make history and it will have to happen on the pitch. Go out there, play football and enjoy!”

Source: VI Pro

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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

Oranje’s future: Arnaut Danjuma

The dark, barren days truly seems behind us now. Those days, when we couldn’t qualify for a big tournament, remember that? Now, we have some world class central defenders, exciting top notch full backs, a midfielder on the scouting list of many a big club and coming from nowhere (seemingly) some new attacking talent!

Arnaut Danjuma Groeneveld suddenly appeared. From second tier club NEC to Belgium’s top club, Club Brugge. And yesterday, he joined the Dutch national team squad in Zeist. “My nerves are holding up well. I do wish to find new challenges all the time and this is a top example. And I don’t want to just be here today as a one-day-fly. I wanted to proof myself and come back regularly.

Asked what his secret is: “I don’t have one. It’s a matter of confidence with me. I work hard every day and this is the result. People tell me things go really fast for me, but I don’t see it that way. I work hard and this is where I am at now. And it’s almost normal, you know. Ever since I was a child, I wanted this.”

“I spoke with Ruud Vormer about it of course and with Stefano Denswil and Sofyan Amrabat (all Brugge players). It’s sad Ruud had to bail with his groin injury. This is a huge honour for me and I hope I’ll get the chance to show something. These two games, vs Germany and Belgium. Amazing of course. And there are two mates of Brugge called up for the Belgium team. That is extra cool.”

Danjuma has scored 5 goals and offered 4 assists in 14 official games. He’ll meet some old friends at Oranje. “That makes life a bit easier, I know Rosario and Bergwijn from my time at PSV. It’s special for sure.”

When the 21 year old was presented at Brugge, son of a Nigerian mother and a Dutch father, the experts could see what his thing was. “A mouthy Dutch lad, who cuts inside to shoot on goal with his right. The whole Belgium competition will know this within weeks.” But like with Arjen Robben, knowing that he’ll do it and stopping him from doing it are two different things.

Club coach Leko signed Groeneveld from NEC, now called Danjuma. And after a couple of training sessions he knows enough. He’ll start Danjuma in the super cup match vs Standard Luik. He breaks open that match with an assist in the first half. Leko is convinced. Aad de Mos, ex top coach and football fanatic, watches the first match this season in the competition of Brugge. And he knows after 45 minutes. He grabs his phone and tweets: “The Dutch top clubs have been sleeping again: Groeneveld is at Brugge and is a top player!”.

After three matches in the competition, Danjuma is the most discussed player / topic. Club wins and Danjuma has to face the media again and again. Ruud Vormer looks at with approval from a distance. The blue-black jersey tightly fitting the muscles on the upper body, legs like concrete pillars and a twinkle in the eyes.

Danjuma is not keen to discuss his past. He had a life of ups and downs and one day, he’ll tell his life story. Not now. “That is too personal”.  Because life in Lagos, Nigeria isn’t easy and neither is moving to Holland and being caught up in the social services system of child care. He did say something once… He was in three different host families until his dad finally got custody. He doesn’t want to say more. He used to confuse attention with affection and was hoping on positive re-affirmations. Like the 8 years at PSV, where he suffered from many injuries. Every coach could see he had talent but he needed to stay fit.

In Nijmegen, at NEC, he changed from an inconsistent talent to a man with a mission. Danjuma finds inspiration in athletes who had to fight to get to the top. Players like Zlatan or Neymar. Or Memphis. Or a boxer like Mike Tyson. “Setbacks make you stronger. Let’s just say I experienced more than most at my age. I think I built up more resistance.”

When Arnaut was Arnaut at NEC, he already told anyone who wanted to listen: I am good, I will become better, I will play for a top club and I will win trophies. Danjuma at Brugge seems to fulfil his promise. And he did play against Almere and Helmond Sport last season. This season he’ll play Borussia Dortmund and Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. The goal vs Atleti and more specifically Jan Oblak already went viral across the globe.

At NEC, they are looking forward to the day Brugge will sell Danjuma to a big spender, as NEC will receive a % from that future deal. They sold him for 1mio euros which enabled NEC to almost build a complete new team as a result. How was it possible that NEC got this gem?

The Dutch youth international made his way to NEC two years ago from the PSV youth to the NEC youth and in two seasons Danjuma got 14 goal and 17 assists in 46 matches. Not bad!

Danjuma: “It is not true that the Dutch top clubs were sleeping. There was interest. There was also interest from Germany, England and France, but I followed my instincts. I can’t explain what it was. Everything clicked for me here. They really wanted me, courted me. I love that. Manchester City was interested too, but I think this is the club where I can really develop and make my minutes.”

Groeneveld did have to adjust a bit. “In Holland, at NEC, it was rough at practice. We’d go in full throttle, rough tackles and very feisty. Here at Brugge, I started yelling at players at practice and Ruud Vormer had to talk to me and said “that is not how it is done here,” hahaha.”

Danjuma played for Young Oranje but was also entitled to select Nigeria. He always expressed his wish to play for Oranje and Koeman decided to not allow Nigeria a shot at the winger. “I would have considered an invite for Nigeria, I do feel the Nigerian roots. But my dream is to play for Oranje.”

NEC was able to present their 11th new player some weeks ago, thanks to the transfer sum that they banked for Arnaut Danjuma. General Manager Oversier: “I was just here, at NEC, when I saw him play and I thought “that kid will one day play for Oranje!”. He is really good eh? He’s not even that super fast, but on the ball he is explosive, threatening and able to go on the outside or inside of the opponent. And his kicking technique is out of this world. He has so much potential. You should analyse his goals, they’re all differnt. I have seen right full backs fall over, so dazed and confused from playing him, hahaha. He never made it at PSV due to his injuries, otherwise he would have played there now, for sure.”

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by Jan

Ajax’ success and the youngsters…

Truth be told, 20 years ago we would not be ecstatic and celebrating the fact that a Dutch team would make it into the CL group stages. It’s true. We sank deep so now we are delirious with joy if Ajax beats some lesser clubs and makes it in the millionaire’s ball. And, before you know it, PSV might follow suit!

The Golden Age returns, or so it seems.

But, such is reality now. After some dry years, Ajax demonstrated a panache and arrogance and quality that does remind us all of the early days of Van Gaal’s Ajax in the early 1990s. But let’s not get carried away.

The best is yet to come.

And with more good news coming on the night of Ajax’ victory (well, a draw) in Kiev, Frenkie de Jong declared before the camera not to move away from Ajax, this season. “Well, everyone would love to play for Barcelona and I hope one day I will, but not this season. I will stay for at least one more season. This will be a very fine season indeed!”, were his words. Boom!

And it seems Hakim Ziyech, the maestro playmaker will remain an Ajax player too. Good and happy times in Amsterdam, where Marc Overmars and Erik ten Hag have constructed a winning combination.

And it was Ajax’ offensive power that appeared to be their best defense. Dinamo Kiev claimed before the game to be going at Ajax from the start. That promise only came true in the first ten minutes of the game, when the fowards of Kiev press the Ajax defense and their wide backs push up immediately to create a man-more situation.

It forces Onana to some early saves and brings a couple of corner kicks to Dynamo. But Frenkie de Jong, midfielder last night, finds the response to all this huffing and puffing. He drops between Blind and De Ligt and offers himself as an option to play out of the pressure. At the same time, full backs Wober and Mazraoui push up, forcing the two Kiev backs to cover much more ground than initially planned. And they are therefore forced to make choices. Do I stay or shall I go, as the Clash proclaimed. When the backs push up, De Ligt, in this example below, has the ability to find Mazraoui, free on the right hand side (and again playing a perfect game).

It is this pattern that brings Ajax a huge opportunity, when Schone pulls one of the backs out of position and Mazraoui can steam forward. His pass finds Donny van de Beek going in behind who plays a cross to Huntelaar. All the veteran striker needed to do was lift the ball over the goalie and he could have scored.

A second tactic Ajax used was the third-man tactics. Whenever De Ligt or Blind play the forward pass or dribble into midfield, Van de Beek or Huntelaar will make themselves available. Once played in, they will bounce the ball straight into the feet of a team mate on his way to the opponent goal. This is how the penalty situation is manifested. Blind plays a fast ball into Van de Beek, who passes direct to Tadic. Wober is completely free on the left and his cross is turned into a corner.

Ziyech to take, De Ligt to attack, were it not for a Kiev player pulling Mathijs to ground clearly visible for all to see. No VAR needed.

Sadly, Tadic hits the post.

Time again Ajax finds the free man and the Amsterdam team pushes Kiev back to their own half. And as Kiev needs to take more risks, Ajax can also counter attack, allowing for loads of good opportunities. It’s actually a miracle that the end result was 0-0. And it’s not just the lack of good finishing, left back Wober had many opportunities to give a good final pass, but failed to do so. The centre back clearly had to get used to his new role, replacing the suspended Tagliafico.

Despite the misses, Ajax reached the group stages in style. Defending without the ball is still a bit of a chore for the Sons of Gods but in possession, Ajax is simply breathtaking at times. The holy trinity of De Jong, De Ligt and Blind made sure Ajax had the balance to keep the ball ticking along. With Tadic and Ziyech as the creative playmakers, it seems this youthful Ajax side gets the opportunity to prove they can do this at top level as well.

One of the key players for Ajax, is 19 year old captain Mathijs de Ligt. What a tremendous surge into the lime light for the youngster. Every top club in Europe wants his signature. And he’s one of the few players to be very consistent, both in Oranje and in Ajax.

It was more than half a year ago, when De Ligt received the band.

“It was weird. I remember it well. I was asked to see the coach in his office. I thought he wanted to give me some more instructions for the Heerenveen game. But he said I would be his captain. A big surprise. I love challenges and this was a challenge and something to be proud of. It felt weird, that first match, but now, I’m used to it.”

So he is now the leader in the team?

“Oh no, not at all. All the Ajax players have a tendency to coach and to be present. And we have some experienced players, like Huntelaar, Schone, Blind and Tadic. They are real leaders and very present verbally. I play like always, but as I’m playing at the back, I naturally can spot more and see more and use this to coach, but all the players at Ajax have this. I did talk a lot in the youth teams as well, and it’s a selfish thing. The better my midfielders handle situations, the easier for me, hahaha.”

De Ligt wasn’t always a defender though.

“I played most of my games in midfield. I think my football skills were built there. I loved playing as a midfielder. But in the B junior team, coach Peereboom pulled me a line back. I remember being off it a bit. Why? I love midfield? And he explained his reasons. The physicality needed at the back. I did notice my body changing and I started to enjoy playing centrally at the back. My technical skills helped me a lot. Ajax also worked and works on the mental side a lot. I think all over Holland, youth development is great, but I do believe Ajax is just a tad ahead with the mental side of things. You know how Ajax debutants often score a goal? I think it has to do with the preparation. You’re drilled to believe that performing is all that matters. So when you finally make it into the first team, you’re fully poised to make a difference.”

De Ligt was being guided by ex Ajax defender Barry Hulshoff but he made the change to uber agent Mino Raiola. And everyone believed De Ligt would be on his way to a big club.

“No that is not how it works with me. I am still with Barry. He coaches me and guides me more on the football-side of things. But Raiola has other strengths. But my dad is super important too. I need a good mix of people and I’m not focusing on leaving Ajax per se. I’m still young and with players like Tadic and Blind coming in and Ziyech staying, I don’t see why I would have to leave the club now? The signings have given me some peace and quiet. The level at training now is sensational. And, dont forget, I can want to leave all I want, but Ajax plays a role in it too. I want to reach the top, the highest I can, but I have time. It’s more important that I get to play football. And now, we made it into the CL so that is really cool. The podium we all long for.”

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by Jan

The Hand of Ronald Koeman

It’s that typical question, when a coach takes over at a club or nation: “Is the hand of the new coach visible already?”

Well, Ronald Koeman clearly puts a line in the sand lets the past be the past. “That is the only way for us to qualify.” And he did so on the second anniversary of the death of his friend, mentor, former coach and neighbour, Johan Cruyff. During the press conference before the Portugal game, Koeman said: “I miss him a lot. There is not a day that goes by on which I don’t think about him. He’s in my heart.”

But, the heart is not the head. Maybe 3 seconds later, the former Everton coach says that all Cruyff stood for is currently not so relevant for Oranje. Not because Koeman doesn’t want to play the JC style, but simply because there is no alternative. “You have to play according to the abilities you have.”

Any NT coach knows this, you’re totally dependent on your material. As a club coach, if you miss a good left winger, you can sign him. Or several. Not with the national team. “But, what we can have and must have, alway, is the right attitude, mentality and focus. We need team spirit, first and foremost. Look at Iceland. Look at Wales. Greece in 2004. They compensate lack of top quality with mentality, focus and team spirit.”

The first signal Koeman gave to the players, was the move from the loose Hotel Oranje to the more enclosed “East Germany” style camp of Zeist. Most internationals hated the move, prior to experiencing Zeist. They like what they know. But Wijnaldum said it well, after their first week: “It was actually great. In Noordwijk, players go to their room or stroll with their mates on the boulevard. This time, I actually had to hang out more with players I don’t know so well. And it was fun. Now, we just got the room to rest or sleep and the rest of the time, we’re together. We play cards, we play darts. I had my thoughts prior to coming here, but it’s actually really good.”

Koeman had to start somewhere and this is was his first step. “But, we need to see it on the pitch, at the end of the day. A coach is right when he wins and he’s wrong when he loses.”

The first demonstration against England was a losing one. One of the worst international games Oranje played. Solid in the organisation but not creating anything. And sure, Jeroen Zoet should stop that Lingard shot and in that case, we’d have a 0-0 draw vs a strong England. Not that bad.

But 4 days later, a rejuvenated Oranje counters the arrogant Portuguese off the pitch, in 45 minutes. Koeman does see that Oranje is a quick learner. The ex Barcelona libero saw some aspects to hold on to.

Security

Against England and Portugal, Oranje didn’t give away a lot. “Against two top nations, I think that’s positive. Our central defence played really well. You do need to start with the fundaments at the back and I’m positive. We have two more games of course, Slovakia and Italy and I do believe we will see more progress. We have more good players for these positions (Van Beek, Rekik, Bruma, Van der Hoorn) so I’m happy with that.”

Discipline

Koeman was satisfied with the team discipline. He worked on the training pitch with them and he did see the results in the game. “Tactically, we did well, against England as well by the way. I focused on certain aspects and I saw that come to life in the match. And sure, we still make mistakes, but I am not complaining.”

Player Development

Matthijs de Ligt was one of the guiding lights vs England and Portugal. With Van Dijk and De Vrij/Ake at his side, he was fantastic. “At that age, he is remarkable. But we have more great talents. The key is to use them properly and allow them to grow.”

System

Koeman picked seven different players against Portugal but the most important change, was the set up of the team. Against England, it was a 3-4-3 with two wide players, resulting in two midfielders to cover the midfield. The 3-5-2 vs Portugal resulted in three midfielders and these three bossed the game. But individually, the differences were significant as well. Davy Propper has grown tremendously in England, from an elegant attacking mid at PSV to a leader and controlling midfielder at Brighton. Donny van de Beek and Wijnaldum at his side, a bit further up the pitch, all three players who can control the ball under pressure. All capable of one/two touch football and all players with good awareness of what’s around them. Both Tete and Vilhena played very disciplined in their wide roles and Ryan Babel appeared to be much better in holding up play, than Bas Dost. And obviously, the team played more compact and defended and attacked as a whole. With key roles for central defenders De Ligt and Van Dijk in the attacking moves.

Koeman can be highly critical and he wasn’t happy with the lack of response of his team, whenever Sterling of England dropped to midfield to strengthen the England engine room. None of the central defenders pushed up and the two wide backs (Hateboer and Van Aanholt) were playing too high up the park. Koeman adapted the system in the second half, letting Promes drop into midfield and go with two up top (Memphis and Dost), but Holland couldn’t play compact enough to control the game and was constantly one step too late.

After the Portugal game, he was unhappy with the fact that Oranje couldn’t capitalise on the red card for Portugal and create even more.

Koeman watched both games back on video with his analysts and realised that in possession, Holland still can’t impress. “When you’re on the bench you see the game as a coach and as an Oranje fan. I thought we did ok in possession. When I saw the games again on video, I realised we have a lot to improve on that. We need to improve in the football playing, but then again, I am sure we have the right players who will become available (Daley Blind, Frenkie de Jong, Vincent Janssen). We do have time to build on this.”

Holland isn’t the only nation to have to rebuild significantly. Germany had to do it from 2000 onwards. Portugal had a failed World Cup in Brazil and ended up winning the Euros. England was played off the pitch vs Germany recently and made drastic changes. “I think we’re at that same juncture. We need to make changes, we did, and now we need to build on this. I’m not satisfied, but I’m optimistic. We will keep on working on the 3-4-3 and the 5-3-2. Against lesser countries, we need to play 3-4-3, against the Germanies, Spains, and Frances of this world, we need to adapt.”

An analysis of the different players Ronald Koeman used.

Cillesen vs Zoet

Jeroen Zoet repeatedly voiced his frustration how he – as a regular- was bypassed by Cillesen, a benchwarmer. Cillesen got his change against Portugal and was one of the key players, with six saves and in particular the stretched reflex on a C Ronaldo header. Zoet was less tested by England but he did allow a goal that seemed very stoppable. Lingards shot from outside of the box passed Zoet by 1,5 yards. Any goalie should stop that shot. Of the 7 goals Zoet conceded in Oranje, 5 were from outside the box…

Tete vs Hateboer

In Koeman’s system, the wingbacks need to cover the whole flank. Enter Hateboer, who impressed at Atalanta with this style of playing. Tete is always seen as the typical defender and has always been seen as a weaker offensive back vs Karsdorp, Janmaat and now Hateboer. But the stats say differently. Tete had 5 assists and 1 goal for Lyon whereas Hateboer only had 1 assist and zero goals in the Serie A. Both backs were both playing well for Oranje, with Hateboer winning more duels and Tete being more precise in his passing. With Karsdorp and Janmaat also in the running, we’ll have options here.

Ake vs De Vrij

Even though there was not to cheer about re: the England game, the back three played very well. De Vrij is probably more complete and more experienced than Ake, but Ake does have to left foot. De Vrij and Ake won all their personal duels vs England and Portugal respectively. De Vrij intercepted more than Ake and his passing accuracy was very high (92% vs 80% for Ake).

Van Aanholt vs Vilhena

Vilhena is normally a midfielder although used by Gio as a left back every now and then. Koeman picked up on this and Vilhena played a perfect first half vs Portugal. Van Aanholt has tremendous legs and lungs and also knows how to score. Having Vilhena as another alternative (Kongolo, Willems, Pieters, Daley Blind) will be a plus, as the Feyenoord youngster might just have more in his locker in terms of positioning play and ball control over Van Aanholt.

Strootman vs Propper

It remains a mystery. Strootman is a leader in Roma’s midfield. He’s seen as a key player and has been for 7 seasons in the Italian capital. But in Oranje, we hardly see that player.  Strootman has excuses of course, for the England match… No midfielder would have impressed in the set up Koeman chose, as England created a man more constantly. But Strootman does seem to slow the game down and does go for the obvious pass. His first touch needs a lot of work. Propper on the other hand is a real gifted technician, with good vision for the forward pass. He was constantly open, his first touch impeccable and his head always up.

Van de Beek vs Dost

This is not a fair comparison as they played in different roles of course. But with an extra midfielder instead of a striker, the positioning was much better. Dost’s problem is that Oranje doesn’t play to his strength. He’s a classical centre forward, needing service. Whenever Dost drops back to midfield, he’s arguing with the ball. With Van de Beek, Koeman gets what he wants: dynamic movement between the lines and a player coming into the area instead of a player statically waiting there. Donny’s runs even got us our first goal vs Portugal, when his failed attempt was turned into an assist by Memphis.

Babel vs Promes

When you can’t play dominant football but want to use the turn-around to counter, you need speed. Ryan Babel, not having played in the jersey for eight years, does have that versatility. He’s fast, strong in the duels and can score, with his left and right and with his head. Babel’s relationship with Memphis is developing well and he was key in blocking Portugal’s build up. Promes and Memphis weren’t as helpful in that part of the game and Promes – key for Spartak Moscow – was never able to impress in Oranje, in the two recent friendlies.

Yes, these were conclusions based on two friendlies and particularly Promes, Hateboer, Ake and Van Aanholt will surely have more value for us in the future. With the likes of Daley Blind, Steven Bergwijn, Frenkie de Jong, Jetro Willems, Calvin Stengs and Vincent Janssen on the fringes, this Oranje can only become stronger and better.

I personally am still a fan of Adam Maher. He got lost at PSV and is currently playing relegation football with FC Twente, but with the right club/coach, I think Maher might surprise us all still.

And if we do need a strong central striker in games vs lesser opponents, lets not forget the qualities of ( a fit) Robin van Persie.

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