Tag: Vormer

by Jan

Koeman: Questions and Answers

In the last years, heaps and heaps of questions arose around Dutch football, the national team, our development and football vision and more.

When Koeman came on board as the new NT coach, we expected him to come up with the answers, at least for the NT.

Koeman wanted to use the four friendly games, to come up with clarity, to give the answers.

Now, with those four matches behind us (1 loss against WC contenders England, 1 victory over Euro champs Portugal and two draws, both “games with two halves”), it is time to make up the balance. And lets look at the questions that were answered and the questions that remain…well….questions.

The system

It’s clear that Koeman opted for the “5 at the back” system from day 1 and he wasn’t going to be persuaded to change that. It is a good system to use (5 in defence when loss of possession, 4 in midfield when in possession) and a system for which we definitely have the players.

The mental strength and desire

Koeman was also clear about the mental attitude of the players. “You really need to want to play for Oranje”. And Koeman is the man to send players home who are not committed. Memphis Depay was the typical example of the rogue lad, the larrakin as we say in Australia, who didn’t take discipline to seriously in the past. If he is someone to go on, it seems the players take their coach and their own job seriously now. Memphis is open and friendly to the medium, can be seen laughing at practice and is coaching and supporting is mates on the pitch. It seems he’s also developing a nice partnership with the older Ryan Babel.

The Goalies

It seems to me Koeman will go with Cillesen. The Barca goalie might not play every week but when he does play, he’s solid as. More so than Zoet, who should have stopped that England goal. And Cillesen distribution and footwork is just top class.

Apart from these two, we will have enough young goalies coming through to act as third goal keeper, should we ever make it to a tournament again….

Central Backs

From what we’ve seen, it seems De Ligt has the future under Koeman. He played all four friendlies. Van Dijk is captain and most likely a cert as well. De Vrij, as a right footer, will be duelling with De Ligt for the right centre back position, while Blind will most likely have the upper hand on Nathan Ake. Ake did get the equaliser for Oranje vs Italy, which was nice for him and he does have a bright future. Voted player of the year for Bournemouth of course and a very able player indeed. For now Blind is more solid in his build up play and football intelligence but Ake might fancy the battle with the slower Blind. For De Ligt and De Vrij, it will be interesting to see what De Ligt will do with his future. When he came into the media zone after the Italy game, 14 Italian reporters cornered him to ask if he will pick Juve as his new club. According to the rumour, Barca, Bayern Munich, Man City, Spurs, Juve…they all want De Ligt. Should he decide to go for a big move, he might not get the playing time he needs to get his starting spot in Oranje.

Other candidates to keep in mind for the CB role: Jeffrey Bruma, Terence Kongolo, Karim Rekik, Sven van Beek and Mike van der Hoorn.

Left Wing Back

Vilhena and Van Aanholt were the players used most recently, but Willems and Erik Pieters are candidates as well, as are Nathan Ake and Daley Blind. This might simply come back to the opponent we play. Van Aanholt has more speed and seems to penetrate more. Vilhena is probably better on the ball but lacks the real depth and speed in his game. Pieters is the solid defender but not as able on the ball. Willems is a weak defender but has a tremendous left foot. Terence Kongolo is an option here as well.

Right Wing Back

Daryl Janmaat made a difference coming on for Hateboer vs Italy. The Atalanta right back had a tough first half and still lacks a proper final ball. Janmaat is definitely the better crosser of the two and seems to have more football intelligence (experience). Kenny Tete is definitely a candidate, as is Fosu-Mensah, although Rick Karsdorp, when fit, might have all the tools of the trade for this position.

Midfield

This is the weak spot of the team at the moment. We do have a lot of midfield options, but they are all a bit similar. Wijnaldum for me is the best of the bunch. The opinions were mixed with is game vs Italy, but I think he did well. Mentality is top, his touch impeccable, always knows what is where and won’t lose the ball too often. Strootman to me is less solid might well lose his spot. Propper is another player I rate. Wonderful vision and technique, and developed very nicely in the physical and tactical side of the game. But, add Vormer, Van de Beek, Van Ginkel and De Roon to the mix and they’re all solid team players but none of them has the world class you’d want to see in a team like Oranje. Where’s our Sneijder, Ronald de Boer, Seedorf, Davids, Van der Vaart, Jonk, Van Hanegem, Cocu, Jantje Peters? I think Van de Beek can make the step up. I’m convinced Frenkie de Jong could be that player. We need at least one. Vilhena can play in the midfield of coure, and Ruud Vormer has demonstrated to be an option as well. And who knows, the real Adam Maher might even find his mojo again…

For now, I’ll go with Propper, Wijnaldum and Van de Beek. In due time, Frenkie de Jong will take the position of one of these three…

Forwards

I think Memphis will be the sure fire choice for one of the two strikers. Babel has something special but Promes has the future. Agile, skilled, quick, can score goals. His partnership with Memphis will need to improve but I have faith. Nothing wrong with Babel as pinchhitter. The former Ajax and Liverpool man can play anywhere up front.

We do have some exciting players that can bring some spice coming off the bench. Elia is always unpredictable and Bergwijn might have a similar profile. Steven Berghuis seems to be the victim of this 5-3-2 system but everytime he comes on, something happens. He’s all class with his left foot. Looking for the top corner or finding a team mate, as he did with his assist on Ake vs Italy. Against Slovakia, he had the assist on Vormer who aimed straight at the goalie. Luuk de Jong, Wout Weghorst and some others might well be useful in certain emergency scenarios. And who knows, Vincent Janssen might move to a team where he can play, score and remain fit…

After the Italy game, Ronald Koeman said this: “I got a lot of clarity after these four friendlies. In certain positions and with certain players, I think I know what to do. But, there is now a summer and pre-season ahead of us and then also a transfer period. I will not make any public statements until September. Too much can change and I will talk to the players first, in September.

 

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by Jan

Oranje disappoints Koeman (and us)

Koeman’s new Oranje had a bland loss against England, an aggressive win against Portugal and now a tw0-faced draw against Slovakia.

Koeman will stick to his 5-3-2, with good reasons, and said before the two friendlies he wanted to use all the players, see them all in action.

He played a line up that I don’t think we’ll ever see again… A midfield of Propper, Van de Beek and Strootman doesn’t seem to work (which I thought already before the match), in particular if Propper is playing the defensive mid role.

Anyway, I don’t think it matter who played where.

The team didn’t function in the first half. The tasks were made clear, we can be sure of that. But the execution was not great. To say the least.

Quite simple, the aggression wasn’t there. The front-foot forward pressing lacked. The team was too stretched with the back 3 too deep and the two forwards too high, resulting in a too big a stretch of pitch to control for Van der Beek, Strootman and Propper. The latter would be stick with his backline, while early in the game Kevin Strootman wanted to push up and Van de Beek as a result drowning against Slovakia’s main man Hamsik.

As a result, we could never put pressure on the ball, we allowed the opponent all the time on the ball and they can surely play ball if they get time and space.

And on top of that, the team wasn’t helped too well with about 5 early deep forward passes simply not reaching the forwards, resulting in early loss of possession. “That is not how you get to play football,” is what Koeman would say about that, after the game.

And when individual players (De Vrij, Blind) lose focus as well, it gets hard to win games.

Nemeth was supposed to be De Vrij’s man (the Slovakia is tall and strong in the air) but he smartly escaped from the new Inter signing and looked for the smaller Daley Blind.

The latter didn’t pick the striker up quick enough, some coordination issues with the former Feyenoord centre back, and as a result Blind was too late and went into the aerial duel half-assed. The header was perfect. Zoet was without a hope: 1-0.

Slowly in the first half, Oranje started to become stronger with the ball circulation pace going up and the forwards Promes and Memphis making threatening runs.

It did result in chances (Van de Beek, free-kick Memphis, curler by Van Aanholt) but it would take till the second half for Koeman to see his style of football being played.

The NT coach took Van de Beek off and brought Ruud Vormer for his debut. The 30 year old Brugge playmaker did what Koeman wanted and somehow the message got through to the rest of the team.

Sad for Van de Beek who was excellent against Portugal, like Propper. That is football.

Koeman: “I wasn’t yelling or overly angry at half time. Just disappointed and I told them this. We needed to go back to the key tasks as we discussed them before the game and just do it.”

In the second half, the Oranje team pressed more aggressively, played more compact and in particular Propper played higher up the park, pulling the defence along.

A good move resulted in Promes’ equaliser – forward pass De Ligt, Memphis in between the lines, good dummy run Van Aanholt and good shot Promes). It seemed Slovakia was getting tired and Oranje should have scored at least two more.

There were chances alright!  Vormer saw a ball flicked off the line, another 100% chance was hit straight at the goalie. Memphis had some chances, even Daley Blind partook in it, with a chance to make amends for his error.

Oranje had Slovakia in a tight grip in the second half, but as we lost the first half 1-0, we won the second with 0-1. Really, we should have put this game to rest.

Koeman: “I am not really too disappointed now. I saw a response in the second half. I also saw that the eleven on the pitch in the first half couldn’t fix it. That is useful information. I expected them to pick it up and I do hope they have learned from this experience. This is why we play friendlies. The first half: a lesson how we don’t want it to go!”

Ruud Vormer was the bright light in this friendly. The midfielder started his career under Van Gaal at AZ as a defensive mid. Aggressive but also a good passer. His only weakness, his lack of pace. He played here and there before going to Club Brugge. Feyenoord was his biggest club in Holland – under Koeman – but he was never able to push Clasie out of the team and left.

At Brugge, they put him on the creative playmaker spot and he never looked back.

Vormer: “What a season. We won the title, I got the golden boot and now this debut! But, I should have scored. I’m not a striker of course, but this ball should have gone in.” Sander Boschker is the oldest player ever to debut for Oranje, with 39 years old. The last 30-something player to make his debut was Ruben Schaken in 2012. It does seem Vormer can prepare to play some more in the orange jersey.

With Sneijder, De Jong, Van der Vaart, Van Persie all out of the picture, it’s good to have a more mature player in the squad. The balance in age needs to be there (Nigel de Jong said recently that he felt Hiddink let the older players go too early after 2014) and Vormer might well bring that.

All in all, not a great Oranje display but lots to hang on to. With Van Dijk coming into the squad, most likely a starting spot for Cillesen, we should be relatively solid, moving into the future. I also count Frenkie de Jong as a potential starter once he’s fit.

For Italy, we can expect a totally different line up. Most likely Vormer to start, with Wijnaldum in midfield. Babel in place of Promes. I do expect Memphis to start.

Van Dijk to replace Blind, Ake to replace Van Aanholt? Hateboer for Janmaat, definitely Cillesen of course. I guess we’ll see Vilhena, potentially Kongolo. Probably De Roon in the defensive mid role.

It’s all fun and games for now, the real deal is still a bit away.

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by Jan

Gearing up to Oranje friendlies

With the lull we had in Oranje football and the newly appointed strong men finding their feet (Hoogma, Koeman) it’s time we see the Orange Lions perform again. The Eredivisie simply can’t convince us of better times to come I suppose… Ajax, the best players but inconsisent (and even worse with Ten Hag then under Keizer at the moment). PSV, on title winning course, but never impressing (bar the Feyenoord game, in which they played very good) and Feyenoord…well… disastrous really.

AZ is getting the kudos and the headlines, and rightfully so, but we’ll need to see if they can do it in big games vs big opponents as well. Usually, the bottle it against Ajax, Feyenoord and PSV.

There are some positives though, some of our Oranje candidates abroad are getting stronger and stronger. Memphis and Tete show promise. Promes shows…well…promise. De Vrij, Hateboer, De Roon, all strong. Davy Propper is getting praise from the Match of the Day punters while Mike van der Hoorn has found his role in the Swansea defense.

The number of youthful talents in the Eredivisie is on the increase as well, with quite some strong talents coming up on the radar. Soon, I’ll post an article with some up and coming stars for us.

Ronald Koeman made some big changes when he started in the job. In the olden days, a former team manager decided to have the NT stay and train in Noordwijk, in the hotel of a friend. Strange of course. Because the KNVB spent millions to build a cool sports centre in the forests of Zeist. Every athlete or sports team (Hockey, baseball, etc) would go there to be secluded, to be able to focus and have all the amenities available. The NT however, had to train miles away from the hotel at the amateur club of Katwijk (Dirk Kuyt’s former club) and logistically, this was always a drama. The players loved it there though, the more “extraverted” ones would slip away from the hotel to go to the vibrant night life of Zandvoort or The Hague to have some party time away from coaches and family.\

Media circus at Hotel Noordwijk

Under Koeman, no more. He was known to be one of those party animals when he was a player and he knows every trick in the book. (If you were a team mate of Ruud Gullit, you definitely would get a master class in slipping girls into your hotel room…yes girls…plural!). So Koeman decided to stop with that ritual of staying in Noordwijk. And he is directing his underperfoming prima donnas to go to the prison camp – a luxurious one though – in Zeist. Boom!

Koeman demands dedication, rest and professionalism on his long and winding road towards the 2020 Euros.

Koeman is quite optimistic. He believes any team or squad needs to play to their strengths AND weaknesses. “If we don’t have the world class talent of Sneijder and Robben anymore, we’ll need to use the strengths we have. If we’re not strong defensively, we need to make sure we don’t need to defend…” Cruyffian statements.

He asked the questions, rhetorical ones of course. “How is Quincy Promes doing in Moscow? Isn’t De Vrij a top defender in Italy? Has Memphis not demonstrated that he can do it? Is Wijnaldum not a highly valued player under Klopp? Didn’t Liverpool break the transfer record for Van Dijk? Can we not all see the amazing lungs and legs of AZ’s Guus Til? Aren’t we excited about Frenkie de Jong, Justin Kluivert, Donny van der Beek?”

Koeman is optimistic. But also disappointend. “When I was called up for the national team, in my days, I was proud. I was exhilarated to be part of it. I would go even when my leg had been amputated. I miss this mentality now. The pride to wear the jersey. The attitude, the mentality. When you have less quality, you simply have to give 110% of what you have. When you’re Messi or Robben or David Silva, sure, you can rely on your skills. But when you are Greece 2004, you need to spit in your hands and work work work. “Missing one tournament is highly inconvenient, but okay, it can happen. Missing two in a row, is really bad.” The only good thing for Koeman is that with Oranje and the KNVB in crisis, he could come in at his terms.

So after barely a month in the job, we can see some impact already.

The move from Noordwijk to Zeist is a big call. The players’ quarters are at walking distance from the pitches. The medical centre is right next door. There are gates around the complex, so Ronald can work in peace and without media people or scouts or managers trying to butt in.

The KNVB Sportscentre

The prelim squad selection is a second big one. No more Wesley Sneijder. Ronald Koeman did it with grace. He flew to Qatar, spoke with Sneijder, our record international, and basically said: Wes, just pull out of international games, otherwise I have to drop you. And with the former skipper and leader’s international career over, the career of new faces Til, Weghorst, Kluivert, Bizot and Padt just started. And if Frenkie de Jong wasn’t injured, his name would be on the list as well. Our team manager simply looks at players who play well consistently, so Ruud Vormer – best player in Belgium and ignored by Koeman’s predecessors – is also finally part of the prelim squad. Hans Hateboer went through a tremendous development at Atalanta and is also part of the 33-players prelim squad. Koeman’s signal is clear: I cast a wide net. If you perform well, I’ll spot you!

The third signal Koeman is giving, is hidden in the age and skillsets of the players. Ryan Babel is the only 30+ player in the squad. Koeman considers to play like Atalanta does, with three defenders and a team of fit, athletic runners (like Hateboer and De Roon). This playing style fits Koeman, who introduced it at Feyenoord and it will fit Daryl Janmaat, back in the squad, and players like Van Aanholt and Ake.

And lastly, the way Koeman organises the accessibility of the players will change. In the past, it was a media circus when the players arrived at the Hotel Oranje in Noordwijk. Not any more. There will be no press conferences to announce player selections, just a press release. There will be one Oranje training where media is welcome, but only for 15 minutes. At Southampton and Everton, Koeman worked like this. He doesn’t like media and other voyeurs to be watching when he is working. He wants peace and he wants to be able to say or shout things that should not be repeated in the papers. In England, this is accepted. In The Netherlands, the media will complain about this as the former NT managers were usually quite open. But the criticism leaves Koeman cold. He shrugs his shoulders…

“My terms!”

I personally don’t see too many surprises in the squad. Still a bit surprised that Erik Pieters isn’t called up but we do have good quality on the full back positions, with Patrick van Aanholt finding his old form again. Sven van Beek will probably get a look in later, if he keeps on performing consistently and Frenkie de Jong will also be a no-brainer.

It’s good to see Bergwijn amongst the forwards, a very bright prospect indeed.

At the same time, we have all seen how hard it is to reach and stay at top level. I think our good friend Emmanueal Tiju was blowing the horn of Kevin Diks and St Juste and Bart Ramselaar and Jorit Hendrix in the past year, but one can see how hard it is for a talented youth player to stay at the top and keep on developing. The orange jersey seems a long way out for Kevin Diks at the moment.

I saw some questions on the site about some players. My opinion below:

Bryan Linssen – good sub top forward. Already 27 years old. Quite lazy. Doesn’t give 100% for the sports, always struggling with his weight. Gifted player but not for the top. He’s at Vitesse now and I think that is his ceiling.

Idrissi – was kicked out of the Feyenoord youth and went to Groningen. Was seen as a dissonant there too. Showed promise at Groningen but finally shines now at AZ in a better team. Van de Brom is a coach who can reach Idrissi, so there is still hope for him. Very talented but also full of himself.

Ruud Vormer – also a bit long in the tooth. Lacks pace. Great player on the ball, a bit like Lasse Schone. Not an Oranje international long term.

Guus Til – great talent, wonderful runner, picking his time right and cool in the box. Pleasant personality too. Like Van Ginkel a bit. Will make it.

Wout Weghorst – reminds me of Van Nistelrooy. Hard working, very ambitious, invests a lot in himself. Will make it big(ger) due to his workrate and personality. Will not even be able to stand in the shadow of Van Basten, Kluivert, Van Nistelrooy but can be very useful.

Bart Ramselaar – was a big man at Utrecht and took a long time to find his role at PSV. Finally seems to find his game, played well in the last weeks. Too early to tell.

Expect a post on our former skipper Sneijder and our former playmaker Van der Vaart soon!

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