Horrific start Ajax and Dutch football…

My oh my… what a summer (winter for me)… Apologies for not posting much in this time. There was not that much to share I suppose and I have been going through some changes with my business and circumstances so had to focus a bit more elsewhere.

Thanks for sticking with me guys!! We’ll see the start of the season soon and lots and lots of cool things to focus on!!

But sadly, we won’t be seeing Ajax in the Champions League :-(. What a disaster… What can I say… I think Ajax is the fifth club in a row from Holland now to qualify for the CL through pre-season qualifications. We simply can’t do it. Austrian, Portuguese and Czech clubs are stronger. Pffff…. This time around, I feel Frank de Boer needs to look in the mirror, long and hard. He has experience (and class) in Lasse Schone and defensive grit with ex international John Heitinga but he decided not to play them. Ajax made a mockery of their first leg vs Wien. They led 0-2 and could have been 0-4 by the break. But Ajax allowed the home team to get back into the game. And in the Arena in Amsterdam, De Boer’s youngsters made defensive mistake after defensive mistake. Naive, unprofessional and lackluster… And these were the good points. Poor Sinkgraven was the butt of Cillesen anger while goal scorer Gudelj “forget” to act one minute after equalising to stop Rapid from scoring their winner. What a drama!

De Boer accepted his responsibility but simply avoided the question “why not play some experienced players in these European games????” by commenting “I made that call and I can’t start complaining about that now…”. No… not complaining! But the nation deserves an explanation. What were you thinking??

Ajax now has to play for Europa League qualification and a PSV sans Depay and Wijnaldum will have to defend our honour.

Hours after the game, this pic went around on Facebook. Rotterdam cafes offering full replays of the Ajax game… Dark sinister humour….

ajax rapid

Here is the blackboard enticing Rotterdam based fans to come and “celebrate” reruns of Ajax – Rapid Wien on the big screen…

On the home front, Vitesse had a touch night against Southamption. Pelle and Tadic (both Dutch roots) played strong with Clasie ruling midfield and Stekelenburg being shot stopper. Koeman’s side will do well in the EPL this season and he is now also making a play for Virgil van Dijk (Celtic, ex Groningen).

Feyenoord had a quiet preparation, with too many losing prep games, but Gio van Bronckhorst knows that the games (losses and victories) don’t count in preparation. With Dirk Kuyt, former Ajax defender Jan-Arie van Heijden and (former?) international Eljero Elia one can expect some fireworks in De Kuip.

We can expect some lightning in the Eredivisie anyway, in terms of excitement, with new PSV signing Lestienne as Depay’s replacement. The Belgian forward looks remarkable with his Neymar style hair do and even groomed eyebrows and gold football earring… This player will sit nicely in a series of players who will keep the pundits busy, like Kazim Richards, Ole Toivonen and Marko Pantelic before him. Players you love to hate.

Another headstrong Dutch player decided to play in The Netherlands, Michiel Kramer will sign for Feyenoord. We did lose Depay, Wijnaldum, Clasie but we gained Kuyt, Heitinga and Elia so still a lot of expectations. PSV did well on the transfer market with aforementioned Lestienne, Davy Propper from Vitesse and Uruguayan talent Gaston Pereiro.

psv

The talk in Eindhoven will be about forming a new success team and Champions League football while the talk in Amsterdam will be about changing course. It seems Johan Cruyff will come down from his mountain in Barcelona to fix things, even at the expense of Frank de Boer if he has to….

Ajax had one advantage last season: they played so dull than only Jesper Cillesen (and Kishna) were interesting for foreign clubs. Kishna has left (and joins the likes of De Vrij, Braafheid and Hoed in Roma) while Cillesen for now remains in De Arena. Ajax will most likely perform better this season with Sinkgraven settling in, Gudelj as engine in the midfield and Heitinga enforcing the bank four. The return of Mitch Dijks is a good move and Ajax and Feyenoord will most likely battle for the title with PSV (again). Vitesse is a dark horse after so many good players leaving the club, although Peter Bosz has proven to be a good coach and Chelsea seems happy to offload more good talents towards Arnhem. AZ lost good players (Gudelj, Berghuis) but has a strong foundation and a very good coach in Van den Brom and will most likely find its feet…

In the big European leagues it will be fascinating to watch Dost, Huntelaar and Robben in Germany, while I personally will keep an eye on Van der Vaart in Spain. The three Bundesliga lads will definitely be able to play a role for Oranje. Whether Rafael is still Oranje material remains to be seen. The Turkish competition will increasingly ask our attention. Sneijder at Gala and Van Persie at Fener while Ryan Babel is also making steps up in Turkey.

cillesen angry

Van der Wiel might leave Paris, but Rekik joined Marseille and wants to win the title. Unclear where Van der Wiel will end up. In Italy we have a contingent of players at Lazio and destroyer Nigel de Jong remains at AC Milan. With van Wolfswinkel and Martins Indi we have some reason to follow the Portuguese competition but the key for me will be the EPL… Depay, Blind and Van Gaal in Manchester, Koeman, Clasie and hopefully Van Dijk in Southampton and a number of exciting names in Stoke City… Erik Pieters is joined by Ibi Afellay and Marco van Ginkel while Nathan Ake is also still on the look out for a good club to be loaned out to… Dick Advocaat and Lens at Sunderland. And we have a nice Dutch contingent in Newcastle of course, what with Siem de Jong, Krul, Anita, Wijnaldum and Janmaat… Btw, the infamous Number 7 jersey ( George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham, CRonaldo) will find the shoulders of one Memphis Depay now Di Maria has signed for Paris SG.

Lots of good football to look forward for sure!

The changes at Oranje make me smile too. With all due respect for Guus, it was time to make way for Danny Blind. Van Oostveen is as culpable as Hiddink in all this. Everyone in Holland knows Guus and Louis are not really good friends and have a totally different way of working. Van Gaal’s way worked really well in the WC2014 and Danny Blind is a Van Gaal adept… So why pick a coach whose style is totally the opposite and give him an assistant who has Van Gaal’s DNA and is supposed to follow in Hiddink’s shoes… Ridiculous. Danny now has his staff for the remainder of the qualifications with San Marco joining in. I would love to see Jan Wouters joining in as well but that is another matter.

wk2018blind

The Oranje staff will be focused on winning every remaining game in the Euro qualifications of course, but the draw of the World Cup 2018 is upon us and the Dutch are happy to be in another Group of Death for the qualifications. Oh, how we love those…. Oranje needs to play France, Sweden, Bulgaria, Belarus and Luxembourg….

Danny Blind responded in typical style: “It’s a good draw. Exciting. But tough. You do wish to avoid the two big nations in the second tier (France and Italy) but what can you do? Only the number 1 of the group will qualify and it will most likely go between us and France. But don’t rule out outsider Sweden. Which probably was the toughest nation from the third tier and Bulgaria is the best of tier 4 in my view. So we got it tough. We don’t have time to dilly dally.” Blind represented Oranje at the draw in St Petersburg instead of Hiddink. “It doesn’t feel strange to be here. By now, I’m used to it. We dealt with it and we need to move ahead. The task ahead is not easy but we will focus on qualifying for the Euros and we’ll think about France and Sweden later… But these are the sort of matches you play for, so it is all good.”

 

401 comments

  1. Hi I hope everyone is doing well!

    Sucks that we are out of the top 10 but it is the cold hard reality of where we stand in world football.. time for some changes. Let’s hope Blind can inject youth so we can rebuild.

    here it the fantasy premier league code.. jan you should join us!

    http://fantasy.premierleague.com
    Name: GLOBAL
    CODE: 31206-157494

    1. At Ajax and in the youth system, he played it well. I don’t think he will be good enough for the EPL in that role though and Louis should either sign a player of the quality of Hummels or Pique or Ramos or rely on Jones / Smalling. Vlaar might be an option. Blind lacks the killer mentality and body and length. But he is an ok header of the ball and most importantly he reads the game very well.

  2. Thanks Jan it was dried up for a while,though your business is more important.
    Really cannot wait to see Danny blind-San marc..on top.2 intelligent thinking footballers as leaders and coach,cannot be bad,i have a good feeling like i had when LVG took over from Bert.
    Ajax must terminate overmars before deboer i think,for signing all waste players.i feel something really wrong with business of Ajax. Playing is different and doing business is different…No matter How big players they were,Ajax need pure business people,who had innovative ideas to develop and maintain fund and marketing.

  3. Feyenoord up for the fight, down a man but still win 3-2 v Utrecht.
    So nice to see Kuyt score for Feyenoord once again! Nice to see Vilhena scored as well.. I hope Vilhena and Achahbar can realize some potential this season, great to have them playing under the leadership of van Bronkhorst and Kuyt – mentality / work ethic are something which seems like is missing in the younger generations.

    1. this is very true..may be feynoord has the kuyt spirit,i feel bascicglu is deal.Vilhena might learn what is personality from Kuyt. i think vilehna will earn from kuyt.
      Nijel,kuyt,vlaar are rare species who are well groomed and know what is male and what is female..sadly but had to say nowdays there are more afellays than these players.

  4. Southampton v Newcastle (Steks v Krul!)
    First EPL goal for Wijnaldum! Krul made a couple wonderful saves but game still ended 2-2 not much he could do with either goal.
    Janmaat a few too many giveaways and little weak defensively, esp on the the 2nd Southampton goal, could work on his ariel duels. Not the best game, a bit sloppy and neither team could succeed in controlling the midfield.
    Too bad no Clasie, can’t wait for him to get fit.
    Like Wilson said before it would be good if Clasie would quit being injured so much!

    Watching Pieters, van Ginkel and Afelaay (all starting) v Liverpool now

    1. Afellay is as usal with his tupid dribbling with zero end product..but people are amzed by his stupid dribbling..Ginkel had some good passes…Wijnaldum is proving he is deal and newcastle are lucky to get him.

  5. AZ Alkmaar – Ajax 0:3

    I expected more from AZ, but Ajax was too clinical and deservedly won. Too bad that Dabney dos Santos got injured right before the game. The absence of Gudelj and Berghuis was too noticeable in AZ. I still believe AZ will perform well this season but team needs a little more time to accommodate new youngsters in the team. Hopefully, AZ will gain more confidence before the game with Romanian Astra…

    1. AZ lost some players its true,i think victor fischer didnt play for Ajax..that was key point in ajax victory..Poor AZ was unlucky that de boer decieded not to play victor.but he played with victor vs Rapid veinna.

  6. Castaignos,Dost,Huntelaar all were on target for their Respective Club in the DFB Pokal. Coincidentally all Wolburg, Schalke, Eintract Frankfurt played with 2 strikers up front (4-4-2).

    Maybe its too early to say this, But for me Castaignos is a real deal. I think he is an upgraded version of Huntelaar and Dost.his a gifted striker who knows how to get goals and hopefully his move to Eintract Frankfurt will be rewarded with a NT cap.

    Castaignos and Locadia -(Wild Card)

    1. Not surprised…he cannt help..especially u can develop by sitting in bench or cann help team from bench.i hope kishna goes to kuyt to learn one or 2 lessons..

  7. Only watched Man United and Tottenham over the weekend. Depay started at 10 but it will take a whole of beating for him to oust Ashely Young from the wingers.

    Blind, again Schneiderlin and Carrick did all the hard work in the midfeild keeping totenham at Bay but in the second half when the game started to open up his side was easier for the Spurs to penetrate through.

    Vorm- bit shaky when making decisions but overall was good between the sticks. unlucky to concede own goal.

    1. no not at all,basically there is no competition for cillesen as long as Blind as coach.None of the other 3 are not doing better than cillessen whether it is in Ajax or Manu.Infacyt if cillesen is no1 for Manu.there would be zero compettion.i am logically speaking.

      1. What makes you think he will have zero competition at Man United. After watching Ajax vs Rapid Wien I doubt he will able topple Romero. well if are thinking he will be well secured by the midfielders and defender underneath the sticks, then mind you EPL is not a place where Van Gaals chess maneuvers will work every time.

        well yea like Depay, cillessen also might get personal preference form Van Gaal over Romero but experience vs preference.should be interesting.

        1. I agree whoever is playing best of the EPL keepers should probably be our #1 for the NT. But I think Blind will keep Cillessen in the spot either way.

          Not sure if he will go to Man Utd or not, Cillessen denies contact – but both LvG and Blind like a keeper who can play with the ball, and Cillissen does fit that bill..
          Did you see how bad Romero was on the ball on Saturday?

          Also I dont think Cillessen was to blame for the 3 goals from Wien at all.
          Sure, 3 goals in 3 chances against his goal looks awful but everyone of those goals was preventable by simple defending.

          1. Well I will admit the first goal was a defensive howler, but 2nd and third was well executed goals. At EPL level you can expect alot of goals like that against him if that is the case.

        2. i said Cillessen will not have compettion if he is o1 at manu..Not saying he doesnt have compettion at manu but i feel LVG would give him nid as dutch..and ball playing GK.

        3. “”no not at all,basically there is no competition for cillesen as long as Blind as coach.None of the other 3 are not doing better than cillessen whether it is in Ajax or Manu.Infacyt if cillesen is no1 for Manu.there would be zero compettion.i am logically speaking.”””this is my statment
          So were would u got that i said Cillessen has zero compettion in Manu???Are u delusional??..u need to see thinsg with open heart,also try to think in logical way.

  8. i am just waiting and hoping for a move for Virjil van dijk with ronald koeman.
    Van ginkel finds a coach like LVG.
    Depay moves to his favorite position…
    Elghazi turns to holding midfeilder like LVG turned bastein to holding from winger.
    Sure Manu will win EPL this year with signing of a defender ,pedro and cillesen or Degea.

  9. Was only a matter of time before Cruyff weighed in:

    Ajax are ignoring basic principles

    A few years ago Ajax decided to implement a certain vision. My name was attached to it, but in reality it was just a return to the days of Jany van der Veen and Rinus Michels. In my days as a footballer, Van der Veen was responsible for youth development. He was someone who was able to look at football in a simple way.

    Michels did this in his own manner. He learned me that when you are not a good header, you should not try win headers. Or try to sprint against someone who is faster than you. In other words, when you are not strong in certain aspects, you have to be smarter.

    With Michels, we played friendly matches each day during the summer to prepare for the season instead of doing extra training sessions. The idea was to analyse as many situations as possible and build up our physical condition in the mean time. From this simple idea Ajax developed world class players.

    That is why I have always worked with these basic principles. Just like Michels, I thought friendly matches are more useful than training sessions. And I added some personal ideas to this. At Barcelona I let goalkeeper Andoni Zubizaretta play as a left midfielder so he could improve his footballing qualities.

    But these basic principles are now being ignored at Ajax. To be clear, this is not an attack aimed at Frank de Boer. He is only the last man in the chain and there are many people involved. This is why I have asked the board to bring in a man like Tscheu La Ling to have a look at things. He will deliver his report with recommendations soon.

    Because something needs to be done, however not only at Ajax.

    Just look at the Dutch clubs in Europe. It was clear to see how little the ball was played to a forward moving player, which is the basic of positional tactics. He is the so called ‘third man’, the man that moves forward and has the view to direct the play. He is a player you don’t play the ball in his feet, but a few meters ahead of him. This rarely happens anymore because the lines are moving away from each other. This was once a quality in Dutch football, but it has now become a problem.

    1. Cruijff may be right, but things seem different in the rhythm of the seasons now. EPL had only 57 days between seasons.

      So training via friendlies is great. And he’s probably right that strength/conditioning stuff has gone overboard.

      But JC brings the wisdom of hindsight to this argument. Ajax and Holland need his leadership, not his debriefings.

      1. Good point Goldstone :-). But I do believe JC is right. He is not longer available for coaching (he did his job at Ajax) but his comment about lines getting out of whack is aso right. Even in the NT…

        1. Yes, Jan, especially about the space between the lines.

          And he’s right about generating more flow with the creativity that comes from playing, not as much from running drills.

          I just wish he’d make it happen.

          1. With due respect but I think he is overrated.His vision and philosphy are ambitious but frankly speaking it needs specific type of players to get it excuated. You compare Ajax when it had the likes of Vaart and Sneijder,they had the qualities which coincided with what JC had in his mind.compare that with todays Ajax team you need players like Van Ginkle and Clasie to excuate that but unfortunately Ajax today dont have the players of same quality. Attack orientated or defense orientated,the modern day soccer is all about the player quality.

    1. This is a guy who has an axe to grind. LVG pushed Stoichkov out of Barca (apparently). And he is now taking revenge whenever he can. We all know LVG is a difficult guy, but he does not destroy clubs.

      1. True and well said,its the time to pay back dirty stoichkov..if i was working with LVG i would have destroyed stoichkov at the media like Jose does to Arsene

  10. Alex Buttner needs to get out off Dynamo Moscow asap if he really wants fight for a spot in NT. Things have become bad to worse now with prominent foreign players departing the club

    Firstly they were excluded from European competition for breaking Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, then came the sacking of the coach on last hour and now after the depatures of some prominent players,
    Mathieu Valbuena is the latest to have has left the club to join Lyon in order to play in championship footy.

    I hope he can find a good club before the transfer window closes.the new coach is also going all russian.

  11. I reckon the players to look out for in eredivise this season is Adam Maher. His form had dropped somewhat soon after joining PSV but he has really picked up his game and Im hoping CL will take him take him to another level.

  12. Haha Martin Hansen’s 94th minute equaliser for ADO Den Haag v PSV was crazy!
    Agree wilson, would love to see Maher succeed. Big year for him.
    Propper has been looking real good too, they link up well. Hendrix has it tough as it seems Guardado has the CDM spot. Too bad cause I really like the all Dutch young mid 3 of Propper – Maher – Hendrix

      1. Propper is the real deal. One of my favorite young Dutch players who i think is gonna have a big career ahead of him. Such a shame Ajax did not sign him!!

          1. except maybe better that he plays champions league with PSV, ohhhhh!
            (sorry ajax fans haha)

    1. Ronald de boer has better eye for real intelligent talent than Franc de beor…Nowadays lots of stupid players is getting more chances than real deal…We need more players liek Davy proepr,ginkel,Clasie the old Roben,sneijder vaart and RVP…We dont need Afeally,Promes,nasringh..etc..

  13. According to De Telegraaf, van Dijk to Southampton is very close..
    Very glad for him – for a while now he has wanted to prove he has the quality to play for the NT, he puts his head down and keeps playing his game and improving and now he should be rewarded with the chance to prove himself in top competition.
    Buttner should be taking notes!

  14. Is this real or jus a rumor.Chelsea intrested in Van Der Weil. His contract expires in 2016 and PSG doesnt wanna let him go free with negatiation well under way for contract extension. I think if the bargin from Chelsea is good Van Der Weil should move given the RB position is well covered by Aurier and Marquinhos in any circumstance.

    Even if PSG renews his contract,it will be more aimed at increasing his market value rather than seeing him walk out free.

  15. Looking at Box-2-Box middielders,I think it is very congested at NT level. Strootman,Van Ginkle,Clasie,Wijnaldum,klaassen,Propper. If strootman returns from his injury without any major replications then thats position should be his in the Euros.Speedy recovery for him but he is due back in October.Though wijnaldum has played alot in that position,I dont think thats his natural position.CM or winger remains to be seen.

    I would like to see a midfield trio of Maher- Strootman-Van Ginkle jus as in U21 days.

    1. Have you ever played with a forward trying to play D?
      Bad idea IMO, need him in any of the front 3 positions, unless LvG can transform him into a #10

      How about Ake at LB?

      1. Ake as LB is not convincing as of now..He was a greater version of Nijel as holding mid and seemed like a pure succeser to nijel…But Chelsea academy has spoiled him very much..so let him recover from damage made by chelshit first.

  16. Southamptons capture of Oriel Romeu looks promising.Between him and Ake I think its his experience having spent loan spells at Stuttgart and Valencia might have given the edge for Southampton to signing the versatile Midfielder.Not Sure whether Ake was in the picture here or no.

    1. Isn’t Romeu still a CDM (just like Clasie and Ake)? If so, then if he went to Southampton they would have 3 CDMs (including Wanyama), Ake would make 4… would be strange although the dutchies are versatile 😉

      Or did you mean to post this on a Chelsea blog?

      1. As I said Im not sure whether Ake was in the picture here or no but you would have expected Koeman to go for Ake if he wanted to reinforce DM options.As for Romeu he is jack of all trade and master of none so you expect him to be used in multi positions.

        Also I wont be suprised him Clasie is prefered at No 10.

        1. Maybe Clasie could play there but he rarely or never does, and also why do you want players playing in positions where there is already top class players?

          1. I dont think Southampton has got a specialist playmarker.Vs Newcastle,Mane played at No 10 only to make room for Rodriguez.So its either they get a recognised no 10 or go with Wanyama,Clasie or Romeu.Davis not sure whether he can fit at 10.

  17. over the year Wijnaldum is the most improved player,showing intelligence,leadership,character,wellgroomed guy,he can play as winger,playmaker to extent,box to box runner and holding mid..So he is an asset to any team.i heard chelsea is behind him.

  18. Clasie has quick thinking,vision,intelligence,ball control and fighting spirit.so he fits the bill for play maker.he is too small to handle a physical role like holding mid.we or suthampton must use him as playmaker than holding mid..koeman is so brilliant that he knows clasie is small but he compenstaes this with huge WANYAMA..as his partner.
    infact we really have only 3 or 4 real playmakers those are clasie.maher,ginkel?? or klassen..i mean number 10 role..Danny blind or any must stop wasting time Promes,afellay,narsingh,bMI and veltman at back..this is essential for to build a strong team..
    i have strong feeling tat we are in safe hands we wont see any wrong players any more bar daley blind as LB.

      1. i was talking future so sneijder was omitted,honestly steve wats ur opinion on wingers…IMO we dont have good wingers with intelligence.So we need Depay as winger i prefer him to stay as lefet/right winger…So is wijnaldum..he can also play as winger like he did in isreal EC21…after these players we are lfer with headlesschikens and a weak player like boetius.

        1. my opinion on wingers.. def Robben and Memphis.
          for backups I actually like the idea of Wijnaldum (utility man) and Berghuis (of last season form), Lens is Ok and maybe Fer sometime… but I would love for Singkraven, Kishna, and Vilhena to make the next step, I think they are capable with the talent but need to prove it.

          Tough decisions for Danny Blind for sure, form is so hard to judge after a couple matches after friendlies which are just warm up but its also important to have fluidity and consistency especially in a NT where players play all over the place….

          1. kishna has workethics problem may be attitude also…But Sinkgraven is deal for sure,but i feel coaches would use him more as playmaker..berghius is still improving,its depend which coach u r working with at ur young age..lenz is inconsistant,but i like him he is a blessed player with certain intellgence and a team man.i agree that these are best possibles after Roben and Depay..

  19. things should become more clear come festive season when most leagues will be approaching the half way mark. This is where Blind should have a fair idea on what the team should look like in the euros.

    I jus hope Van Basten will shadow him through out should he need technical expertise.

    Once again no Daley Blind for me.If Daddy still goes with sunny boy at LB,then NT is done.

    CB definitely no,midfield too clustered no chance.

    1. Daley will play in NT as box to box runner or left footed CB i think under Father blind,its hard to drop ur son especially if starts for MAnu.here goes the blind spots
      Holding mid
      Nijel—Blind
      box to box..Strootman,Ginkel,klassen,clasie–Blind
      lB—Williams—-blind…

      1. I just remembered you told me to mark your words that Buttner and van Aanholt will be backups to Willems in September… haha, we’ll see pretty soon!

      2. It will yet again take another game like vs France and Mexico for the whole coaching panel and KNVB to realize that Daley Blind is jus another weak link in the team defensively.

        well under Hiddink,with Willems injured,you could have expected Van Annholt or Buttner to get the callup. Now if under Blind Still if Sonny boy is preferred at LB then its simply personal preferrence over best intrest of the team.

        You see at the moment Karim Rekik,Wesley Hoedt,Kongolo,Van D ijik are still yet to hit their prime,I mean natural defenders.Once they reach their prime,the door for Daley Blind will automatically close like at LB and Midfield where competition is intensifying at NT level. its jus a window of oppournity which awaits players like Van Dijik,Van Annoholt,Buttner for them to stamp their mark at international stage.

        Well if Danny Blind still ignores them then he will find himself in the same boat as Maradona at 2010 WC.

        1. @wilson..Daley blind is physically weak and not fast..but he is really a SMART player..not a headlesschiken like many eg Afalley,promes etc..None of our LCBs has the intelligence to cop with blind honestly..when it comes to intelligence Riekik,vandijk and bruma are no match for him..May be kongolo would give him a good compettion..lets hope for the best..

          1. Daley blind is a versatile player who gives immense tactical options to coach during a match…LVG really benefitted from it by using kuyt and blind using intelligently…they are the ones who covered the s%%&^*^it of BMI and verhage..

  20. Guys, any idea why Steve Berghuis wasn’t playing (not even on the bench) in Watford opening game? I has high hope of him and was disappointed not to see him in the opener.

    Btw, I think Daley Blind can be groomed into CB. Didn’t give much away in Man U vs Spurs IMO. Hopefully LVG will develop him and pull off a masterstroke here. 🙂

    1. more team run/fitness I suppose. It might take some time for him to adopt to the new setting and environment,But his not injured that for sure. Watford has made 10 summer signing, 6 made their debut last week vs Everton,so most probably this week you can expect the rest to start or be on the bench

      1. As for Blind the same was said when they shifted him to midfield but it was jus a waste of time , the same will happen at CB.with weaker teams he will thrive, but with big teams he will become a liability as usually. Last week Tottenham were not penetrative , MU midfield did the hard yards covering the CBS especially Schneiderlin. Strikers like Likaku and Beneteke will make him eat the dust.

    1. Agree this has to be the best transfer season for Dutch players without a doubt.It will all come down to Danny Blind and Co now to come with the best possible combination based on player performance.

  21. Blind has stated thre would be new players plus strootman later on..
    gks
    cillessen,vorm,krul,zoet
    defenders
    janmaat,karsdrop,vanrhijn
    kongolo,reikik,virjil,devrij,bruma,vanbeek
    Williams,annholt,buttner,blind
    holding mids
    Ake,hendrix,nijel,leroy fer
    runners
    klassen,ginkel,toonstra,clasie
    playmaker
    snijedr ,clasie
    strikers
    hunter,luuk,locadia
    Wingers
    wijnaldum,depay,roben,berghuis,sinkgravan….
    this should be our pool of players for 23..
    if rVP and vaart gets something from youthfountain…then they might pull a miracle..so its wild card..

    1. bacuna pocketed Depay and Manu wingers..he looks more solid and capable than Janmaat and Vanrhijn..i feel bad for him..
      Blind was really good at back with smalling..very intelligent reader of game..
      Sad point was Depay is not clinical and this guy has bulked a lot,this will reduce his agility and speed,so i doubt about further depay development..based on physique..

  22. Ruud Vormer with a goal and a assist for Club Brugge vs Kortrijk.

    Im telling this now,there was alot of hype When Man United was drawn with Club Brugge in CL playoff with critics decscrbing it as a easy drawn.If Man United under estimate this team they will be in the run for their money because this is the same Club Brugge team that reached the EL QF last season.they have a talented squad with no players from last seasons leaving the club in the new transfer window.

    1. club brugge is good team,the issue is LVG is a super coach so Manu will win it.Under LVG Manu became a very difficult team to beat very difficult,though they create less number of chances ,they are tough.Brilliant coaches decides the out come ,they mould the team and get the results..Brilliant coaches nmight sign a wrong player but when they realise thats wrong one,they put them in to bench.like PEP did to afellay in barca.

  23. my mind is about the pool of players needs to be selected for NT under danny blind and the future
    —————Locadia————–
    —————Luuk—————-
    ————-klassen—————
    Williams——–Clasie——-wijnaldum
    Singraven——-Maher——–Berghius
    ——–Ginkel——–Strootman——–
    ——–Ake———-Hendrix————
    Annholt—Kongolo–Devrij—–Karsdrop
    Blind—–Vrijil—-Vanbeek—-janmaat
    ———Cillessen/Zoet/Krul———-
    Roben is struggling…
    depay is getting bulky both are not good signs,but roben issue is ineviatble coz he is getting aged.
    I feel williams is more comfort on ball than Depay as winger,williams boot is more acurate than Depay..

  24. Wijnaldum is taking PL by storm..Depay is struggling..
    Afellay and Ginkel is doing bad..Funny thing is that Spurs is not allowing Afellay to dribble.so he gives back pass..thats the improvemnet for Afellay..Ginkel is playing like stranger.No clue about wat to do.clearing not finding rythem with mates..

  25. Was really excited for this mornings matches for epl dutchies, with Blind likely to choose a prelim squad this week.. but really disappointing all around.

    Koemens and Steks’ Southampton beaten 0-3 at home by Everton. Wanyama / Romeu were bad, Clasie (out for a couple weeks with an ankle problem) is just what they need to control the middle..
    Advocaats Sunderlands Lens and van Aanholt both looked really poor at home losing to Norwich (but no vWolfswinkel in the lineup haha).
    Stoke’s Pieters and Afelaay were awful on the left side versus Spurs. Like tiju said van Ginkel needs to improve lots too, silly giveaways.. Stoke came back to draw after he was replaced. That says a lot.
    The worse was Janmaat, horrible match and single handedly sunk his team all himself… Really bad positioning and played Gomis onside for the opening Swansea goal, then 3 awful fouls gave him a red card by HT. And just when he had won me over for the RB spot 🙁
    Too bad for poor Krul, Anita and Wijnaldum all working hard as usual but could do nothing.
    Berghius played the last 10 mins in a 0-0 match for Watford..
    At least Blind was very good again for United yesterday, Memphis a little disappointing in the #10 spot, I prefer him in the wings – but it’s Ok, he can take a little time to settle in – same with Ginkel, and likely Clasie although Dutch players typically do settle quickly in England.

    Tough decisions for Danny Blind…

    But Huntelaar scored for Shalke today, hope he stays consistent and has a better season this year than last!

  26. I feel Januzaj is better talent than Depay.Januzaj is faster and better dribbler..
    Daley blind,bacuna,Wijnaldum and Anita are guys doing for their clubs..cannt say anthing about krul..may be he too doing good.
    So far Depay is flop,Ginkel,afellay seems useless,peiters too..i hope Virijil joind southampton as their defense see worry some.
    I think Ake and Berghuis would do better at watford it seems.Depay is getting playing time only due to van gaal,Coz andreas peirara and Young plays better than Depay..LVG drops and andreas and keep young in bench..

    1. I still don’t understand why people here said that Ginkel is excellent, the future of NT midfield with Strootman.

      He was very good when he was at Vitesse, but nothing special after moving to Chelsea. It is bad for Dutch NT.

  27. DM doesnt doesnt suit Van Ginkle.He got injured at Chelsea while playing DM and also he struggled there in the in initially stages at Milan until Inzaghi switched to 4-3-3 bringing him closer to the strikes. he is best at B2B.

  28. I have watched Man United vs Tottenham and Man United vs Villa. In both games the opposition lacked cutting edge and couldnt penetrate. Vs Villa Daley Blind only made 2 tackles and 3 interception. This was as per opta stats after the game. This shows how hard the defensive mids were working in front of the defense especially Morgan Schneiderlin.

    Now if Danny Blind selects sonny boy at CB vs Iceland it will be a big mistake.At Man United Daley may be well protected as usual under Van Gaal but come NT he wont have the same luxury in NT especially when.the game opens up.

    Its a must win game vs Iceland.DM and LB will be trickly position for Danny if he plays Daley at CB.

    As I mentioned it will take more games for epl guys to get their rythms going.Wijnaldums looks good on counters but when in congested situations looks kind of vunerable especially in defense.

    Robben also jus played jus 65 mins and still remains to be seen what form he will be come the game vs Iceland.Im sure Bayern will be all but cautious on him going on internationals duties.

    1. @WILSON..dANNY BLIND WAS NOT BAD VS tottenham…He is not a great CB ,but gets the job done.agree that Both Carrick and shniderlin does lots of dirty work to protect back very intelligently.Williams our top dog is injured and annholt plays like shit..so blind will play as LB i think..Reikik/Kongolo might play as LCB since Vlaar also injured..Blind is playing 1000 times better than afellay thats fore sure

      1. Some more opta stats, Blind was 10/10 on his clearances, had the best passing % and the most passes of any player in the match with 65/68.
        Not to mention back to back clean sheets.

        haha Blind might actually be the best option around at this moment for CB, LB and DM.

  29. Rooney is playing bad like RVP did..so LVG why dont u go
    Young——–Blind——–Peirera
    ————Mata—————
    —–Shniderlin—Bastein——
    Shaw—-Rojos—Smalling–Darmian
    ———–romereo————

    1. how can you expect Rooney to score when he doesnt receive any service.Van Gaal played Depay vs Tottenhan and Januzaj vs Villa at 10.both wingers,you really expect them to provide service to Rooney. They are playing too defensively.

        1. Manchester wont sign lucas biliga…they are in for a CB or may be striker…Blind cann to any thing worse than RVP did is last seasn and that Rooney doing now.

  30. LVG is too cautious, he doesnt like to give the opportunity to opponent team..Under LVg i dont think arjentina created a good chance vs netherlands in WC…so thats how it is .chess game..he is doing what AZ alkmar did under LVG to win eredivise..if wonders doesnt happen LVG will win one more league EPL.

      1. 4 GUYS Carrick,bastein,shniderlin and Blind are so intelligent players,their reading of game is astonishing,they are super professionls too.unless injury happens they would hold any headess chicken in their pocket..others will looks like fools.Footabll is a simple game but u cant play it with simple brain..

  31. Its bit of shame Feyenoord is not in the championship.The squad looks formidable. AS expected Jan-Arie van der Heijden slotted in at CB shifting Kongolo to LB. The Bench also boosts of talents and utility players. Can expect a close race for the title this season.

  32. RVP came of the bench for Fenerbahçe to make his debut in the Turkish premier league vs 10 men Eskişehirspor but couldnt find the net, though they won 2-0.

  33. ManU spends lot of money and yet has guys like Depay playing out of position. And shipping off RVP so that Rooney becomes your striker was a bizarre move by LVG.

    1. @Richarde….Manu spend lots of money on false players last season like Falcao,De maria etc..especially Demaria who is better version of afellay in my book.RVP was the worst player for Manu in all books,slow ,slugish due to age..He is done..Once they droped him they beat every top in PL WITHOUT persie,team played better.so there was no room for RVP..Rooney was much better than now at last season.after seeing 2 matches i feel Rooney is also following RVP footsteps..i am sure Manu will be more clinical if they drop Rooney in to bench..earlier LVG realise this the better for Manu.

  34. hye guys kevin dijks of vitsse seems a deal,many says about him..any opionions on him??
    ricky karsdrop???how good is he?
    Danny blind has assured some new faces..i think we are weak at LB,RB,wingers…
    Huntlaar—Luuk
    Sneijder—Maher
    Depay——wijnaldum
    Roben——Berghius
    klassen—-Proper
    Nijel——Hendrix
    Blind——kongolo
    Vrijil—–Reikik
    Devrij—–Vanbeek
    Bruma——Janmaat
    Cillessen/Vorm/krul/zoet
    but i doubt the work rate of sneijder,Roben,hunter and depay together..it might looks strong on paper but i think they lack industry..

  35. as long as latin american teams coached by fools Germany and dutch have super chance to win A WC…
    Dunga is fool to axe Thiago silva…and 7-0 undisciplined david luiz(who was at fault of many (German gaols) is promoted as vice captain..if this Dunga can be coach of Brazil i can also be..

  36. Robben opened the scoring today in a friendly, not bad.
    Seems strange to be playing friendlies still when the Bundesliga has begun. Mind you Pep is obviously no ordinary manager.. but good news for more playing time, and of course a goal. Really hope Arjen gets into a good run of fitness/form again, such a great player and great guy. He has had such an unlucky career as far as injuries go.
    Common problem for the Dutch no?
    Maybe Arjen will magically have the time he has missed his career added on now, in its twilight..

  37. Imoortant CL qualifiers today for a few dutchies:
    -Memphis and Blind both starting for Utd at Old Trafford versus Club Brugge with Ruud Vormer..
    -de Vrij (plus Kishna on the bench) and Lazio play at home versus Leverkusen..

  38. Fulltime in both matches..
    Utd win 3-1, looking good for the second leg, as expected.
    Lazio win 1-0, de Vrij was substituted at the end, driven off on the buggy with a neck brace on, hope that is just precautionary since he did not look happy get the neck brace.. but a clean sheet is good!

    1. 2 little things I loved about Memphis today – after the goal he didn’t celebrate to crazy, just went to his team quickly before running back to get on with the game. Second, on 14 minutes where he chases down a bad Januzaj pass and slides into the corner flag to the ball only to prevent a goal kick. Great attitude, so important since skill only gets you so far. I hope he remains humble and hard working because it will now be easy for him to become the opposite.

      1. i still feel he lacks accuracy in shots..not that fast too.has vision and certain level of intelligence..
        i think we need to write off strootman..will he come back??????injury after injury..

          1. “””worse case scenario is losing the touch just like Afellay now.””””””””””
            This is wrong willson..afellay lost intelligence in birth itself..he is still very good on ball with his feet and makes stupid dribbles with final back pass or get dispossed,but basically gives a back pass.

  39. Though Memphis stole the show today,the question to ask here is was Rooney really serviced well today or not. I see the inverted wing system as the reason why Rooney struggling in front of goal for Man United. This is the same problem in NT.
    Both Memphis and Mata have the tendency of cutting in and this is where Rooney is suffociating.
    With versatile defenders they will always cancel each other out.

    Its either Man United use Rooney at 10 and get a new striker or jus dont use.

    1. I think it’s fine. Rooney’s role is now going to be to get into a position to draw defenders and open up space for the wingers. Sure he’ll still want to score and should be serviced, but in the end it’s about the team winning, and if my striker goes goalless while opening up space for my wingers to dominate then I’d be happy.

  40. Ok this strootman news is being exaggerated. I read this one month a go that Strootman is due back in October as Roma is taking all necesary precaution to make sure there is no further setbacks. Hopefully strootman too will be patient and not rush for the shake of getting back on the pitch.

    1. Hopefully you are right. The Italian media might be the worse so who knows..

      By the way, it is second time Italian media has recently said there was a setback.. Strootman denied the first story, but has been quiet this time.

    1. hardly ..i think Blind must make Roben,sneijder and Nijel leaders and move on…kuyt would be much better addition than RVP now.though,,its time for young ones..

    1. Rooney is playing bad..Januzaj is palying real good so is chicharito its should be
      Depay——-Chicharito——Januzaj
      ———–Mata/Herara———–
      —–schinderlin—Bastien/Caarcik
      Shaw—–Blind—-smalling—Darmian
      ———-Romero
      Bench
      Andrea peirera
      Ashly yooung
      Fellani
      Herrera
      Rojos
      Ncnair
      James wilson
      Rooney
      Blacket
      Valencia
      jones

  41. huge shock! Pedro signs for Chelsea!

    Something is massively wrong with United’s transfer policy unless Muller has been lined up!

    How long can they continue without a right winger?!

    1. Chelsea are behind Jone stones and pedro for days..this would make their team more strong..infact this would make Manu weaker..i mean sign bets possible players and make them sitting in ur own bench,then others are left to play with lesser players..hence u win the league with out much difficulty….thats why i hate this plastic club.

  42. Wolfburg identify Hakim Ziyech as a possible replacement for De De Bryne should he agree to join Man City.

    My Predictions if De Bryne arrives at Etihad,Man City will be unstoppable.

  43. Dutchmen in EC qualifiers today:
    van Dijk with Celtic, 3-2 winners versus Malmo, but a clean sheet would have been nice 😉
    Boetius with Basel, 2-2 draw with Maccabi, kept the bench warm until the last 20 mins..

  44. pedro was adviced by valdes not to join van gaal..so he back stabbed lvg..Valdes is influencing de gea tooo..such anA!@@#sole of man valdes is.
    Chelsea is becoming a real threat for future of football..they have money and they dont care,so they buy anyone for huge some so this blocks the development of young player.ifact they play football with careers of football players.Chelsea is a disguise to modern football..

  45. i didnt see virjil game vs malmo..ratings are poor for virjil..dont know celtic played bad i heard..did anyone watched,,i watched his some games..he is good but not that good..cannt make much difference with indi and bruma,,Reikik is doing better than vrijil i think..

        1. Replay. he only had one or two flaws in the game as you have mentioned leading to the second goal.

          some of his ratings

          Celtic’s defense went the first quarter of the match without being remotely tested, yet when their blue-clad opponents did threaten Virgil van Dijk gave the kind of performance in the heart of the rearguard that will have Premier League scouts swooning. His reading of dangerous situations was first rate, and the lapses in concentration that he has been prone to at times were few.
          then came another late lapse. Having lost Mickael Lustig to injury, Efe Ambrose was introduced and the back four had a renewed bout of nerves. Indeed, woeful defending five minutes into stoppage time allowed Berget to score a second, with the Nigerian at least partly cuplable.

          Virgil Van Dijk 8: If this was his last European night at Celtic Park, then he showed why. Classy, quick and never looked in bother.

          1. Good review for Virgil, thanks for the copy and paste!
            (although I didn’t mention any flaws, I don’t think judging players based on highlights makes any sense and I didn’t watch the match)

  46. Regarding de Vrij leaving the pitch in a neck brace this week, per Lazio trainer: “Stefan de Vrij’s injury doesn’t look that bad. He is ok.”

    So what is our best defensive line assuming de Vrij is actually fit?

    Janmaat-deVrij-Blind-Pieters
    NdeJong

    *backups:
    Bacuna-Bruma-Rekik-Kongolo
    Bazour

    For CDM, I would choose NdeJong since Clasie is not fit, Blind probably needed in the back, and Bazour not enough experience yet..), but Nigel needs to keep the ball moving quicker.. would love Bazour to be selected and come to learn from Nigel.
    For CBs, de Vrij has to be our best CB, and I think Blind has been playing surprisingly well in CB. Backups Bruma and Rekik, since Vlaar is out. van Dijk is close but for me needs to prove himself at a much higher level, Riedewald and van Beek are up soon but a little young yet. If it turns out that de Vrij is injured after all, then I would choose van Dijk or Riedewald to come for experience.
    The wing backs are tough right now…
    For RB, vdW hasn’t been playing, van Rhijn has been benched, Bacuna is not consistent at all (maybe deserves a call for his great match be Utd), Brenet and Karsdorp both lack experience for me, so I went with Janmaat since he has experience there – even though I have low confidence in him…
    For LB, Pieters is a great tackler and works hard so I would go with him since Willems is out, Blind is in CB, van Aanholt has been poor so far, so Kongolo as a backup since he is very versatile.

    1. Defensively Pieters is rock solid but he is also very careless when tackling making him vulnerable to fouling /cards and you cant expect anything from him in attack.

      His is another player whose performance stalled after a lengthy injury spell on the sidelines.

    1. Ok for those who think Blind his playing well at Man United.

      As result off playing well at LB for Ajax, he got the preference to start in NT. What happened?????????

      Then came the Midfield switch, same story what happened ??????

      Now again he is playing well at Man United under Van Gaal in the same manner how he kept him under wraps at the WC. Well at the wc it worked and now at Man United its also working.

      come the qualifiers vs Iceland it will will be big gamble starting him at CB given DM still being a problematic area .

      NDG would be great but then again attacking phase of the play will be compromised.

      It will be interesting ????????

      1. So do you think Blind is playing well at United, or no?
        I dislike United but I cant deny that Blind has been great there, he was a fan favorite and a major part of them getting back into the top 4 last season, and now 2 clean sheets in 3 matches and an assist from CB this season.

        And what exactly do you mean by “in the same manner how he kept him under wraps at the WC”?
        It seems like you are trying to give an impression that Blind has been chased out of positions and/or that he is protected by his coaching but that is just not true at all. He has basically always started for any of his coaches in the last 5 years as long as he is fit, if he was a weak link then he would have lost what looks like a permanent starting spot long ago.

      2. And to answer your questions about “what happened”:
        Well, since he became the first choice LB for the NT in 2013 under LvG, he continued to play well at LB for Ajax under FdB (won the league) and remained their first choice LB for the remainder of 12/13 with Ajax (although he had played a few matches in both CB and DM before and during that season).
        In 13/14, he actually played mostly DM for Ajax and he was turning into their leader, but also played a little bit of LB as well when Boilesen was injured. Was captain by end of season, won the league again.
        This whole time he remained LvGs first choice for LB in the NT, except an Ecuador friendly and a couple WC matches at CB.
        In 14/15, he transferred to Man Utd. Under LvG he had played mostly DM last season, except a couple games in CB and a bunch at LB once Carrick was back. They climbed back into the top 4 and he even scored a few goals.
        I think I have also answered your second question already..
        To answer the third question: yes, it will be interesting!

        Thanks for helping me realize how versatile and important he is. I do think he could be bigger and stronger and faster, but glad his football brain keeps him in top class competition.

        1. Wilson can support Buttner,annholt,Afellay,promes etc …he cannt support intelligent players..its a fact..we need to adjust with it..some people are like that..like u cannt expect a world beater player from promes,Afellay or annholt..its as simple as that…

          1. kongolo and Reikeik wont be a bad choice as LCB..cannt see much difference between them and blind..

  47. It seems like FDB learnt from his mistakes vs Rapid Wien. Deployed Sinkgraven on the wings. well I never watched the game but Klaassen at 10 doesn’t look effective to me.
    Well a win is win but jus a plently to win against a club like FC Midtjylland. doesn’t add up.

  48. Danny blind and MArco vanbasten were spotted at Ajax..they were on serious calulations…i am sure there would be some surprise selections for NT…
    Singravan was not up to his usal though…Bazoer,reiwald,tete played well veltman too..i am eagerily waiting for the priliminary selection.i am SO happy that Danny blind is close watcher of every talent unlike other old coaches..So evryone has a chance to impress…

  49. 31 players named in the pre squad…

    Afellay
    Anita
    Blind
    Bruma
    Cillessen
    Depay
    van Dijk
    Dost
    van Ginkel
    Huntelaar
    L de Jong
    N de Jong
    Klaassen
    Krul
    Kongolo
    Lens
    Martins Indi
    Narsingh
    van Persie
    Promes
    Riedewald
    Robben
    Sneijder
    Tete
    Veltman
    Verhaegh
    Vermeer
    de Vrij
    van der Wiel
    Wijnaldum
    Zoet

    As expected Strootman, Clasie, Willems and Vlaar are omitted for injury.
    Surprised not to see a few names… Janmaat, Rekik, Propper, Maher, Pieters

    1. Or by position..

      Cillessen
      Vermeer
      Krul
      Zoet

      Tete
      Veltman
      Riedewald
      van Dijk
      Verhaegh
      Martins Indi
      Kongolo
      de Vrij
      van der Wiel
      Bruma

      Blind
      NdeJong
      Klaassen
      Sneijder
      Wijnaldum
      Anita
      Promes
      van Ginkel

      Robben
      van Persie
      Depay
      LdeJong
      Narsingh
      Huntelaar
      Afellay
      Lens
      Dost

    2. plz dont tell me Afellay,Verhagh,promes,Narsingh,Indi and weil in team…Among this Indi is the best usable player for NT.heart break to see these players in NT.

  50. Huge pre squad also named for U21’s (qualifying for the 2017 European Championships starts against Cyprus on Sept 4), here are the 39 so far..

    Goalkeepers:
    Joël Drommel (FC Twente)
    Maarten de Fockert (SC Heerenveen)
    Mickey van der Hart (PEC Zwolle)
    Hidde Jurjus (De Graafschap)

    Defenders:
    Nathan Aké (Watford)
    Suently Alberto (PSV)
    Sven van Beek (Feyenoord)
    Peet Bijen (FC Twente)
    Joshua Brenet (PSV)
    Kevin Diks (Vitesse)
    Hans Hateboer (FC Groningen)
    Wesley Hoedt (Lazio)
    Rick Karsdorp (Feyenoord)
    Bas Kuipers (Excelsior)
    Derrick Luckassen (AZ)
    Karim Rekik (Olympique Marseille)
    Jerry St. Juste (SC Heerenveen)
    Lucas Woudenberg (Feyenoord)
    Jordy de Wijs (PSV)

    Midfielders:
    Yassine Ayoub (FC Utrecht)
    Danny Bakker (ADO Den Haag)
    Riechedly Bazoer (Ajax)
    Branco van den Boomen (SC Heerenveen)
    Thom Haye (AZ)
    Jorrit Hendrix (PSV)
    Sean Klaiber (FC Utrecht)
    Joris van Overeem (AZ)
    Daley Sinkgraven (Ajax)
    Tonny Vilhena (Feyenoord)

    Forwards:
    Sheraldo Becker (PEC Zwolle)
    Jean-Paul Boëtius (FC Basel)
    Brahim Darri (Heracles Almelo)
    Anwar El Ghazi (Ajax)
    Vincent Janssen (AZ)
    Ricardo Kishna (Lazio)
    Mimoun Mahi (FC Groningen)
    Queensy Menig (PEC Zwolle)
    Elvio van Overbeek (Go Ahead Eagles)
    Vincent Vermeij (De Graafschap)

  51. Who all will be there for final 23 from preliminary squad.

    Cillessen——No comments
    Vermeer———-”
    Krul————-”
    Zoet————-”

    Tete———-Doing well
    Veltman——-cannot trust
    Riedewald——promising
    van Dijk——-lets give him a chance
    Verhaegh———-Why he is there?
    Martins Indi—–cannot trust
    Kongolo———–deserves a spot
    de Vrij———–No 1
    van der Wiel——how many more mistakes?
    Bruma————-Needs a counselling

    Blind————deserves spot
    NdeJong———-do we need him when we are in need of gaols??
    Klaassen———deserves a spot
    Sneijder———captain
    Wijnaldum——–must the most improved player
    Anita————Give him a chance
    Promes———–Would be time waste
    van Ginkel——-Needs counsellor

    Robben———Hope he gets back in to rythm
    van Persie——10 minutes sub is the only way.Wasting a spot???most likely
    Depay———-Lucky guy he has no competitors
    LdeJong———-lets see
    Narsingh———hardworker should be better than Promes and afellay
    Huntelaar——-injury????
    Afellay———Stupidest player ever to play for orange beating promes and co by miles.
    Lens———-lenz??????he is not playing well
    Dost———–lets see

  52. My picks from selected ones
    —————Hunter—————–
    —————Luuk——————
    Depay———Sneijder——-Roben
    Lenz———-klassen——–Wijnaldum
    ——-Ginkel—-Anita—————-
    ——-Blind——Dejong————–
    kongolo—Virjil—Devrij—–Tete
    Riedewald—BMI—–Bruma—–Vanderweil
    ——Cillessen/Zoet/Vermeer—————-
    players entered with out merit.Van derweil,lenz,BMI

  53. Good match Utd v Newcastle 0-0
    Krul was great, man of the match probably..
    Wijnaldum and Anita were good as well.
    Frustrating for Memphis but worked hard as usual, maybe trying a little too hard, probably a goal will settle him down.
    Blind solid in his 3rd straight clean sheet as CB.

    Hunter, Dost and Robben are all playing in Germany (Verhaegh too..)..

    In 15 mins, van Ginkel Afellay and Pieters all to start for Stoke, Bacuna at Villa, and Lens and van Aanholt starting for Sunderland..
    I hope de Vrij, Kishna or even Hoedt plays for Lazio..

    I think I will watch Stoke (cant believe I just said that) on my TV, and stream Bayern v Hoffenheim and keep an eye on Arjen at the same time!

    1. van Ginkel disappointing again in CM/CAM, but glad he is there and getting time, more and more playing time will do nothing but good. Afellay poor, Pieters was solid.

      Looks like Lens had an assist for Sunderland..

      1. ibrahim crapilley was so poor had to be subbed at 50 min….Marco vanginkel needs to meet a counsellor..i hope blind and san marc hire me as a counsellor..

    1. thats cool news ..Coz he joins with Roland koeman..thats a specuial thing like Memphis doen with LVG.i dont rate Advocate or Marekhughes high..So Ginkel has done another stupid move..Cannt blame hughes on Afellay..as he is always craplley.Advocate alomost killed carrer of Depay but Depay was lucky to get Cocu immediatly…Lenz is a matured player already so all advocate has to do is give him enough playing time.

      1. I don’t know hahaha I’m not going to watch Fenerbahce! I hope he does well there
        I did see the second goal and it was good, close control and fired it past a keeper..

        I just thought that was a funny stat

  54. I hope Koeman will mould clasie at 10 rather than at DM. They lack creativity in that department and I think Romeu and Wanyawa look better option than clasie at DM. I hope Southampton will hold onto Wanyama with transfer speculation surrounding him. This Ben Davies guy is hopeless.

    1. Ben Davies from Spurs?

      Clasie is better than Wanyama and Romeu.
      We’ll see what happens there, but I prefer him in his preferred CDM spot where he picks out passes and controls the tempo..

      1. Steven Davies my bet.

        as for Clasie, Im really worried about him, he seems to be very injury prone and given the physicality of the EPL, its either playing him safe or having him spent lengthy spells on the side line.

  55. jus going back to the NT selection I think t with Anita selection is pretty much due to them (Wijnaldum)playing together at Newcastle. i think thats an indication that Anita,Janmaat and Wijnaldum could very well start vs Iceland.

      1. Janmaat was not even selected in the 31 pre squad, looks like the RB choices are Verhaegh, van der Wiel, and Tete..
        Doubt we will see Anita play, but maybe.

        1. Wow strange I never took note of that. then most probably Weil will get the nod. Tete is big call. Most eredivise hotshots have choked at NT level so it could be 50 – 50 call. I would preferred Bacuna instead. Verhaegh is all about experience I guess but then again Bacuna omission doesn’t add up for me.

          All though with the ongoing crisis at PSG, I wonder how the Coaches will react to Weil being sanctioned by PSG and with no game time under his belt so far.

          1. u have not watched tete…he is beast ,has disicpline..fast and strong…he is the best amoung slected 3 RBs..Plz do watch and follow tete then comment..i comment on Afellay coz i follow him very much..

          2. dont need to watch him.as usually they will choke at NT level.jus like Blind,Veltman and Van Rhijin.

          3. @Wilson everything is relative and individual…van rhijn and Tete are born to different parents at least..simply we cannot write of any one i mean at least seeing even one good competitive match,he way they played for the team..Most of ur favorite guys flopped and i donr wonder about it..to comment on a player u need watch his game,other wise it would be biased and blind opinion..
            FYI…Blind is starter of Mighty MANU…Top club in the world..it is ur Afellay flopped everywehere..

      2. replace janmaat with tete.coz tete is far beter than verhage and vand erweil..roben is playing bit bad..when u have roben and memphis on wings..its better not play with RVP or hunter in middle..it would be wasting a spot i would go for
        ————–krul————-
        Tete——Devrij—Vrijil—-kongolo
        ————-Anita————–
        ——Wijnaldum——blind——–
        Roben——-klassen—-Memphis
        but am sure sneijder will play as captiin blinds team..

  56. Marten de Roon (Heerenveen) also made his Serie A debut for Atlanta vs Inter for with solid performance but had to taste defeat with a heart breaker from Steven Jovetic on the stroke of full time.

    Remember this name, he was Marco Van Basten prodigy during Heerenveen Days led to MVB making him the captain. DM option.

  57. finally something to prove that Depay is getting dispossed than any one..i saw its happening with depay often but no one noticed as he was scoring some how.i dont think sterling is as intelligent as Depay..But stering is more speedy and more effective dribbler..So sterling is creating hovac in defense while memphis is not …i mean failing onesided..failings seems he will never be able to beat his man.i think his gym going and bulking has reduced his agility and he is getting bulky..its a bad omen for memphis..
    http://www.whoscored.com/Articles/vAYdXOwQvUKM6khq1ICP9A/Show/?

  58. what if LVG played following team vs arjentina
    ———-Cillessen————
    Janmaat—Devrij—Vlaar—-kuyt
    ——-Wijnaldum—-Blind——–
    Roben——-Sneijder——Depay
    ———–Lenz—————–
    As nijel was injured,persie has bowel issue..
    lets replace now the same team
    Janmaat—-Tete
    Vlaar——Virjil
    Kuyt——Kongolo

  59. eredivise stat…is it showing that ajax has better defense after 3 matches..
    Team———- P W F A GD
    Ajax amst 3 3 8 0 8
    Feyenoord 3 3 7 2 5
    PEC Zwolle 3 2 7 3 4
    Heracles 3 2 10 4 6
    Roda JC 3 2 4 4 0
    ADO Den 3 1 7 4 3
    PSV eind 3 1 5 3 2
    sc Heerenveen 3 1 5 3 2
    Vitesse arh—- 3 1 4 3 1
    FC Groningen 3 1 3 3 0
    N.E.C.——– 3 1 1 5 -4
    FC Utrecht 3 0 4 5 -1
    AZ Alkmaar 3 0 2 5 -3
    Willem II 3 0 1 4 -3
    Excelsior 3 0 2 5 -3
    FC Twente 3 0 3 7 -4
    SC Cambuur 3 0 3 10 -7
    De Graafschap 3 0 1 7 -6
    ?????

  60. Tiju you keep on twisting and turning but yet come up with crap. jus like Van Rhijn and Van Der Weil when they were coming the ranks,Tete also looks impressive and will mature into a fine talent,but after seeing eredivise debutants choke at NT level it will be a big gamble starting him vs Iceland given the importance of the game.Maybe vs Turkey.

    For me he is a wild card jus because he is playing in Ajax and he is playing well. Im jus wondering here if Feyenood were in the Championship,would Rick Karsdorp would have been selected coz he also has been in a excellent form.

    I wont go to Bacuna jua because Ajax is a far more better team than Aston Villa.

        1. You said Mitchell Diks and Rick Karadorp are future for NT at RBs….enter Tete,he is a beast.

          After the Man United vs Aston Villa game you said Memphis is not clinical ,bulky blaa blaa blaa,after the Club brugge game you write his name on your forehead and starting jumping like a monkey.

          this is what I mean turning and twisting.

          1. i understood u r not foillowing eredivise well…its Kevin dijks….as RB not Mitchell…Mitchell dijks is LB…for ur 130iq…

          2. as a fan i do like Depay and Manu and i want them to do well..but when look with sharp eye,i felt pessimistic about his future…all i said was i what i felt…i hope Depay reduce his weight..

          3. unfortunately I posted before cross checking with you post.no big deal but I hope you get What Im trying to point out.

  61. it is stupidity to write off (Kenny tete)with out seeing tete matches…that means ur things are delusional and u r really predicting tete to flop…its a monkey character…

      1. No……..thats not me..i cannot coz am a Manu fan..but i did called De maria a Flop..several times..After following Demara with manu after several games

    1. Im well away of that. Im following closely on Van Dijik situation at Celtic. well van dijik,Dijks,Diks its kind of confusing.

      And for info,its Kevin Diks and not Kevin Dijks. u see even you got confused.

      either dont try to cover you twist and turn.

      1. NO AM NOT CONFUSED..it can be spelled in many way..but i know the person well thats more important..i mean this can be spelled like
        Dijks,Diks, and dicks…and it is not confusing it at all ,thats another stupid vague statement coz u didnt even knew who is kevin dijks…
        3 individuals plays in three clubs in 3 different positions ..the reality is that u knew only 2 i mean Virjil and Mitchell…so its ur issue…i am not in it..i 100% convinced that u follow afellaay,Vrijil,buttner,annholt etc…but u have a prejudice mind,which is not right…since i am not satisfiied with any of our current RBs …i follow new ones ricky karsdrop ,kenny tete and Kevin Dijks seems real soln.so i hope they stick with their club and develop well rather than going to a chelshit academy.

          1. ok for your sake I dont kniw any thing about Eredivise,I didnt know any thing about Kevin Diiks,but does this change anything as to what you write.

            I dont have to prove this on this blog.read it for yourself.

          2. I can go back and pickout so many things you have said and then after some time sing a different tune regarding the same thing but I dont want to waste my time.

          3. Cut out this childish crap wilson.
            If you pick a fight on this blog then maybe you should have to follow up and prove why on this blog.
            You ignore a real discussion above then you won’t stop when it’s this back and forth garbage.. If you finally admit you don’t know about the dutch league (actually called the “Eredivisie”) then just don’t post about it.

      2. wilson remember how upset you get when I correct your awful spelling (not to mention your poor writing and your incorrect uses of the worse cliches).. And now you do the same!
        Yet you’re still getting Virgil van Dijk’s name all fucked up… Hilarious to see you get burned by Tiju when you are talking shit, as usual.

        Why don’t you guys just try and spell names properly? Then at least you will know which players you are supposed to be talking about…
        But I don’t care, no big deal.. do what you want and spell names how ever you like – call me Steeev if you want… just expect for me to laugh at you! Hahaha

      3. Hilarious.. wilson is correcting spelling now and still getting Virgil van Dijk’s name all messed up.

        Here is a suggestion.. why don’t you guys at least try and spell names/ places/ things properly?
        Then at least you will know which players you are supposed to be talking about… after all, this is about communication right?

        But I don’t really care, not trying to be a language fascist, just a suggestion…
        Actually I enjoy chuckling about how dumb you sound, so no big deal.. do what you want and spell names how ever you like – call me Steeev if you need to… just expect for me to laugh at you!!

        1. you call that fighting,I call it constructive criticism. jus like you corrected me on the Ben Davis and Steven Davis confusion,thats what happened here with Dijks and Diks but then again again I did mention about cross checking after I had posted. The reason being it was my post on which Tiju commented about Rick Karsdorp and Kevin Diks

          So for Spelling errors I guess you are doing a great job autocorrecting.

          1. I was just making a suggestion to try to help you communicate better.
            Its a problem it seems like you are having, and a blog is about communicating with other people, no?
            Don’t you come here to communicate with people in a meaningful way?

            Your poor spelling was not what I called fighting.
            Like I said personally I love poking fun, its even funnier when you are correcting someone else at the same time haha!

  62. All important second leg matches in Europa qualifying today:
    -Boetius and Basel take their 2-2 draw to Israel
    -van Dijk and Celtic take their 3-2 lead to Sweden

    Lots of players possibly playing in English League cup matches today as well..

    1. Not looking good for either van Dijk or Boetius, Celtic need 2 goals to win their tie, Basel needs just 1 goal (Boetius still in the bench), half an hour to go in both matches..

      1. Well, no Champions League for Boetius at Basel or van Dijk at Celtic… too bad.

        Some good news elsewhere though, Siem de Jong and Janmaat both scored for Newcastle today, Emnes scored for Swansea, and Ricky van Wolfswinkel also scored for Norwich..

  63. @STEVE…In Brutal truth..willson was covering up his mistakes on his blunder statement.he doesnt even had the clue who Kevin dijks is..there are many misspelled on players names but all understand that who is who (even from wrong spelling).
    Virjil van dijk
    Mitchell dijks
    Kevin Dijks
    No one uses in this blog DICK..or Dijk or Dijks alone…we all use mostly full name or least Vrijil is more popular so his names in Van Dijk…not Dicks or Dickson…it is poor display of defending his wrong statement..Wilosn is little 10 minutes slow to understand things and has prejudice mind..

    1. Tiju, I e followed this blog since 2006, and out of everyone on this planet you are in no position to criticize someone on their spelling. Especially when it happened days ago

      1. its not about spelling Derek…its about lie to cover up foolishness.i am not a spelling checker or english tutor..Wilson was blaming on Spelling to cover up his foolish statement..Hope u understand..i was just telling it was not spelling mistake that caused problem for Wilson,but its his ignorant comment caused all these comments.

    1. Tiju I can prove that it was just a mistake and not as what you are are trying to coverup.You go back to Steve post on top where he posted the preliminary squad for U 21s. Kevin Diks (Vitesse)

      you go to the post where you posted this

      http://www.football-oranje.com/10-young-players-primed-ready-take-eredivisie-storm/ Kevin Diks (vitesse)

      Go to the blog where you said ,quote” hye guys kevin Dijks of Vitsse seems a deal”.

      If I really didnt know any thing about eredivisie and who plays where then I do I know about all this posts.Do you seriously think I dont read the posts.

      As I said I posted before cross checking with what you posted and hence got mixed up with Mitchell Dijks.

      Now you prove to be me if you can if what ever you posted was not a mistake but as usually another of your twisting and turning crap.

      if you cant then tell I post some more of your twist and turn crap because the list is long.

      1. Haha Joke of a comment..after LCB crap theory another crap theory on my comments????haha EXcuse me its true Steve posted selected players for NT and U21..as knew the selection from other site i was not surprised i didnt checked…for your stupid brain Kevin Dijks is in team of erdivise in last year..so i wanted to follow that guy and am follwing since Weil and Vanrhijn plays crap and Janmaat also not trustable in high games..the problem is always with u u never talk point to point…u always come with crap ,illogical comparisons..

        1. nobody is stopping you from following Diks,its all about what you write and thats what I pointed out in the first place about twisting and turning. you say something today and change your tunr come tomorrow.I hope you are getting me here.

    1. Same
      Tough luck to get drawn against German opposition, and especially if you consider other clubs in this stage..

      you don’t like Braafheid? haha

  64. Memphis great again, nice assist for Rooney and also made the second assist on the second goal, plus 2 more chances created.. Another great performance from Blind as well, 63/64 on his passing and tops in tackles for United. Clinical, hope he keeps it up.

  65. High hopes for Riedewald.
    (If you like Dutch stats check out @OptaJohan on Twitter:)
    Riedewald has made more passes (228, incl. crosses) than any other player this Eredivisie season, completing 95%. Smooth.

    1. YES THATS TRUE.Reidewald,Tete,kongolo,Van beek are really maturing to class level..i really wish they played in same team like Ajax1995 generation.the way they performing seems they can handle the likes of neymar,messi etc..they are fast,has determination and ocncentration on top of it their anticipation also good,they are fighters too.What makes me sad there are some players who dribbles well and ends up like headleless chicken who has no vision or accuracy in shots,decison making(related to quick thinking/intelligence )..people are getting flabergasted by stupid dribbles hence this stupid dribbling/speed acts like a sheild,so that fans never understands who is a better footballer.
      Germany won 2014 WC with out a dribblers like afelllay or promes..Thomas muller cannt dribble like afellay or promes..Why dutch fans,coaches developing stupid players????

      1. Yeah,the aspected comeback was suppose to be Oct but after on going clinical test he was further diagnosed for a third surgery. he must be going through one hell of fruatration.

  66. Romeo Castelen was wonderful team player with extra ordinary speed and eye for key pass..was man behind our U21 sucess in 2006EC21..But aftre joining hamburg he has injury after injury and never played for 5 years…Strootman case is over it seems..sad news..2 bright talents of dutch we lost to injury when we needed them the most…

  67. Ajax through. O-O draw. Went to 10 men in the 2d half. Getting the result they needed away, down a man, probably teaches a young team more than an easy win.

  68. Riccardo Van Rhijn and Elvis Manu are both sujected to transfer with no sign of getting first team action this season.
    I think Jurgen Locadia is in the same boat.

    1. I think its better Koeman concentrate on epl rather than EL. the results jus shows they dont have the depth in the squad to compete in both competitions.
      Tottenham went through the same situation last season and couldnt cope up resulting in losing track in the race for top 6 finish.

      On other hand if they really want to do well in epl they need to sign some household names.

      1. Yes the ‘Europa league curse’ …
        And for English clubs especially where they have 2 cup comps and play through winter.. you need a deep squad to play 2 matches per week all season, in 4 competitions and then especially with the amount of EL playoffs in the spring.

        Of course, Southampton does not have that kind of depth, quite simply not enough $$$ to be a team who signs ‘household names’.

        Anyways for Koeman and Clasie sake (and Stek too) I prefer the club play with what they have from their great programs, make a few modest but smart signings, and build patiently.

        The only other option really is to become a sugar-daddy type club where big money comes in and spends spends spends until eventually they have deadly squads who can win the league with ease, like Chelsea and Man City. It feels negative and it cheapens it, for me, although I can appreciate the play that eventually happens… I think those clubs will slowly ruin the great competitions, but I can’t say the players for those clubs are not world class and it is not great entertainment of course 🙂

  69. Ajax beaten Mancity many times in CL..and some draw with them too..they beat barca too…if they play special ajax style play..Ajax or dutch teams can beat any one with bit of concentration in defense..
    English team normally fails in Europa or CL except bus parking chelsae and Manu under SAF..EPL is a good league where u cannt predict anything out right..So league is good.most popular league on this planet too..So i am happy for Steke and Clasie though both wont play in Europa..

  70. Ajax youngsters Jaïro Riedewald, 18, and Kenny Tete, 19, will be hoping to make their Oranje debuts after strong starts to the season. Both players have by-passed the Under 21’s, progressing straight from the Under 19’s to the full national side. Tete’s inclusion in particular has been surprising given he only has 8 Eredivisie appearances to his name; Newcastle’s Daryl Janmaat was the player to make way.

    Janmaat’s team-mate on Tyneside Vurnon Anita is somewhat of a surprise inclusion too. The defensive midfielder has an important role in Steve McClaren’s Newcastle side and he has been excellent so far this term for the Magpies, but has not featured for his country since 2010.

    The other big news is that Arjen Robben will replace Robin van Persie as captain, which could suggest Blind does not see the Fenerbache striker as a starter.

    Blind has been thrown in at the deep end, with his first two games as Oranje coach being hugely important if they are to achieve automatic qualification for Euro 2016. Netherlands host group leaders Iceland at the Amsterdam ArenA on 3rd September before travelling to Turkey three days later.

    Goalkeepers: Jasper Cillessen (Ajax), Tim Krul (Newcastle United), Jeroen Zoet (PSV).

    Defenders: Daley Blind (Manchester United), Jeffrey Bruma (PSV), Terence Kongolo (Feyenoord), Bruno Martins Indi (FC Porto), Jaïro Riedewald (Ajax), Kenny Tete (Ajax), Stefan de Vrij (Lazio), Gregory van der Wiel (Paris Saint-Germain).

    Midfielders: Ibrahim Afellay (Stoke City), Vurnon Anita (Newcastle United), Davy Klaassen (Ajax), Wesley Sneijder (Galatasaray), Georginio Wijnaldum (Newcastle United).

    Forwards: Memphis Depay (Manchester United), Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (Schalke 04), Luuk de Jong (PSV), Luciano Narsingh (PSV), Robin van Persie (Fenerbahçe), Quincy Promes (Spartak Moskou), Arjen Robben (Bayern München).

    Players cut from original 31: Kenneth Vermeer (Feyenoord), Virgil van Dijk (Celtic), Joël Veltman (Ajax), Paul Verhaegh (FC Augsburg), Marco van Ginkel (Stoke City), Nigel de Jong (AC Milan), Bas Dost (VfL Wolfsburg) en Jeremain Lens (Sunderland)

    1. i pray that Danny blind doesnt get punished for selecting BMI,Afellay,Promes and Van derweil…..
      i dont rate narsingh as high class player..but he is a fighter..may be he will help the team..anyways if BMI,Weil doesnt start in defense we have good chance of winning a game…
      Good deciosns
      Stripping RVP captaincy
      Slecetion of Kenny tete,(sure he is better than Paul and weil)
      Jairo raidwald(Too early though)
      what makes me worried is the headless chickens upfront of no quality rather than stupid dribbling.

  71. Forgot to add..Vurnon Anita has become a beast,he deserves his spot..
    i think blind will go for
    ———–cillessen————–
    Tete—–DEvrij—-Blind—-Kongolo
    ————–Anita
    —–Klassen——–sneijder——–
    Roben——–hunter——-Depay

  72. I never rate Afellay, Jereon Zeot and Luke are Jong, but somehow both these guys are often considered for selection.

    Afellay is not one for combination play as he is too one dimensional in his play, Zoet ball handling and claiming crosses are always unsure to me and De Jong touches and hold up play are not good enough to bring others into play.
    I would prefer De Jong/Lens, Vermeer and Bas Dost.

    1. RVP is easily physically handled by tough defenders..So doesnt even getting the ball.i mean getting muscled off..At least Luuk or Dost can touch the ball by out muscles the defenders….thats situation of NT now.

  73. Arjen Robben was selected the new dutch captain. RvP takes the vice-captain armband.

    I think this spells the end for RvP. I think Robben is more of a lead by example, more consistent player (if he’s not injured), grab a game by the scuff of the neck if you have to, more of team oriented player than RvP ever was. I think this is a great move by Danny Blind.

    http://www.espnfc.us/netherlands/story/2585060/arjen-robben-named-netherlands-captain-over-robin-van-persie

  74. Dost scored the opening goal for Wolfsburg over Shalke 3-0.. 2 goals in 3 matches, nice for him.. maybe he wants to show Danny Blind what he’ll be missing

  75. Some strange and interesting decisions!

    Janmaat and N de Jong end up not making the squad for the matches that Danny Blind has referred to as “four finals”..
    And then Afellay is in there again, who has not been playing great at all. Yet Maher, Propper and even van Ginkel have been better. van der Wiel and BMI have not played at all yet I bet they will start.. even Rekik must be better than BMI!

    I do like inclusions of Tete and Riedewald, keeping an eye on form and the future.. also Promes I can understand for now as he has 4 goals already and plays lots in Moscow showing that form is noticed.

    Really interested to see where Danny puts Daley!

    1. @steve i was so annoyed by the idiocy and stupidity of Afellay,promes..i dont expect them to do well for NT.promes is better runner and hard worker though,..basically their lack of vision,blind shots on goal would spoil a good chance..there would be a goal drought if we play them..but we have some class stars who have carried us from 2005 to till date will carry us again with little luck.once we win we forget that how stupid these players are..thats bad We need better player to support our real class talent to win a WC which is absent from stupid players.
      Afellay—Stupid ball hog with poor finishing and blind shots.
      Promes–Runs like a headlesschiken with no kye passes and gain blind shot on gaol with poor acuracy.
      Weil—Not even playing regular for PSG.No conncentration,soft dribbler..result u will be tormented form right wing.
      BMI–he might look strong but he is not,he is ot fast enough too.poor concentration i must admit that BMI is the best among these 4.
      Another player is Narsingh but since he helps the defense so enormously so i am ready to forgive his selection.
      what makes me wonder is Danny was an intelligent player and how can he select these stupid players in his team..??/?/

  76. 23 should have been
    Cillessen,krul,Zoet
    ———————–
    ========================
    Tete-DeVrij—Reikik—kongolo
    Janmaat–Bruma–Jairo—Blind(utility)
    ===========================
    Anita—Hendrix(utility)
    Klassen–Proper
    Sneijer–Maher
    =========================
    Roben—-Wijnaldum(utility)
    Depay—-Sinkgraven(utility)
    Hunter—Bas dost…..would have been perfect-23 though hendrix is not playing regular..
    utility players give us lots of options while injury and and on filed tactics..
    Clasie injured..
    Strootman inury
    Ginkel–out of good coach

        1. Has played with Memphis lots on he left as well.
          When your NT team is made of players who play in clubs from 8 different countries, players who play with each other add some much needed cohesion

  77. Terrible selection by blind. Leaving Dost outside, but including Luuk de Jong is very strange. Dost is one of the best strikers in the BL! Wiel and BMI have hardly played a second. NO Nigel!? I think we will need him agsinst turkey away. These are games for men, not for boys. Afellay has not played well for stoke. The only good dutchmen in stoke is actually pieters, but our coaches keep on ignoring him. There are many problems with the squad. Cant comment on everything. I am afraid we will miss the Euro

  78. Even with out Roben,RVP and sneijder we can win both matches if we play
    ————Cillessen————
    Tete—–Devrij—-Bruma—–kongolo
    ———Anita—-Blind————-
    ————Maher——————
    Wijnaldum—–Luuk/klassen——–Depay

  79. worst team we could feild is
    ———–Cillessen————
    Weil——Bruma—BMI—–Blind
    ————Anita—————
    ——-Afellay–??????——–
    Narsingh—–RVP——-Promes
    3 headless chicken up front with a static RVP…Snijder presence would make it further static,though he is not bad.
    At the back Weil who has no clue about defense,Bruma-BMI can be worst central pair..Blind can get exposed as LB
    afellay dont want explain
    Anita had to be included since we dont have a holding mid on bench..

  80. The U21 squad has been chosen as well..
    The full squad is as follows:

    Maarten de Fockert (SC Heerenveen)
    Mickey van der Hart (PEC Zwolle)
    Hidde Jurjus (De Graafschap)
    Nathan Aké (Watford FC)
    Sven van Beek (Feyenoord)
    Hans Hateboer (FC Groningen)
    Wesley Hoedt (Lazio)
    Rick Karsdorp (Feyenoord)
    Bas Kuipers (Excelsior)
    Karim Rekik (Olympique Marseille)
    Jerry St. Juste (SC Heerenveen)
    Danny Baker (ADO Den Haag)
    Riechedly Bazoer (Ajax)
    Thom Haye (AZ)
    Jorrit Hendrix (PSV)
    Daley Sinkgraven (Ajax)
    Tonny Vilhena (Feyenoord)
    Sheraldo Becker (PEC Zwolle)
    Jean-Paul Boëtius (FC Basel)
    Anwar El Ghazi (Ajax)
    Vincent Janssen (AZ)
    Ricardo Kishna (Lazio)
    Mimoun Mahi (FC Groningen)

  81. tough match for Wijnaldum/ Anita/ Janmaat/ Krul.. they all worked pretty hard but the game was ruined (Mitrovic+ref=early red) and in the end Newcastle were actually probably unlucky to lose versus a pretty uninspired performance from Arsenal

    elsewhere these matches all kicking off in the UK..
    Bacuna to start as a RW for Aston Villa, directly against Lens and van Aanholt on Sunderland who play on the left side.
    van Ginkel, Afellay and Pieters all to start for Stoke versus West Brom.
    Berghuis not even on the bench for Watford away at Man City..
    Also, van Dijk starting for Celtic again/still.

  82. Wow harsh red card for Afellay, and then stupid Charlie Adam got one too 7 mins later.. Going to be a long and tough match for van Ginkel and Pieters

  83. I think it is just a coincidence, but looks like the 3 teams at the bottom of the EPL after the first 4 matches are the teams who went the most dutch-crazy with transfers this summer: Newcastle Sunderland and Stoke.
    I guess I dont think it says anything about dutch footie, but moreso that it can be difficult to settle if you make lots of changes/transfers…

    Blind & Memphis away to in form Swansea coming up soon, should be a good match.

    1. how was the match???..can we have hope for PSV in CL???
      between watched the match of MAnu vs swansea….if MEmphis is our best talent…then we are in trouble…
      Ayew was star of the match for me….LVG team is toothless and poor in creating chances….Ayew>>>>>>memphis on any day…honestly by a honest dutch fan…got to live with truth..

      1. Ehh mostly watched Utd at Swansea, only a few moments of PSV v Feyenoord so I can’t comment too much – but they will def have a difficult time with CSKA, Man Utd and Wolfsburg.

        I think we can relax about Memphis v Ayew, Ayew is a great and underrated player but I still prefer Memphis. Don’t forget Memphis played 90 minutes away Wednesday and Ayew hasn’t played since Saturday and is playing at home.
        Also if Shaw doesn’t turn off for 10 minutes then Swansea doesn’t win amd Ayew doesn’t instantly become better than Memphis. 😉

        1. ayew availabilty and urgency caught my eye..also he is good at receiving the ball and keeping in his feet..Depay can keep ball in his feet butlots of passes to depay is not getting full filled due to the lazyness of depay..which i didnt like,Ayew is faster than depay…

  84. Much less clinical performance from Man Utd. A typical away EPL match following an away CL match. Probably need to add to their depth asap or could be a tough season for them. Not much options of a threat coming from the bench and they looked tired.
    Schwein and Schneid both pretty sloppy and exposed the CBs, Blind beaten a couple of times by Gomis but not at fault for the goals. Memphis struggled to make an impact.. but I suppose any blame for losing can go to Rooney for blowing 2 big chances.

    1. It was the midfield. As expected as soon as it opened the the back line was exposed. Thats whats in store for Man United if they dont bring in a good CB. DM is big question mark for NT if Blind starts at CB.could have been jet leg or faitigue from CL qualification but again the game showed how the defense will crumble with quality strikers. Thats why I feel Blind at CB is risky. its jus a matter of time it will get exposed. todays game was jus a trailer.

      I was also surprised with Van Gaal decision to take Mata off instead of Memphis. was really dull with no workrate.

          1. I’m not blaming Blind for the goals. You see Van Gaal has made it apparent that Blind is well tacted infront of the two holding mids because of defending capabilities. now this is where it all went wrong for Man United. Possession lost while on attack,holding miss were ingaged, two long balls,backline exposed two typical strikers goal.This will happen again to him with quality strikers and given that SMile is still a problematic area for NT. It’s too risky playing Blind at CBS.

            This is what people think about Blind, because he is playing for Man United, he should play for NY. Well fair enough, but you have to look at the real picture. What he is enjoying Man U is not what he will get it in NT.simple as that.

          2. Maybe try reading what you write before you post it buddy. I disagree with most of what you think and I have no idea what you are taking about the rest of the time.

  85. watching SWA vs MU, I still don’t understand what LVG wants from Memphis. Is he a winger? I think LVG wants Memphis to play like Robben from left side. Dribble, cut inside, then shoot or pass. He has a strong right foot.

    But, yesterday, I did not see that. For most of the time, he just pass the ball back to Luke Shaw or to the midfielders.

  86. its not just nauton all the good wing backs takes Depay in his poket..His gym work outs are backfired and he is loosing agility..looks like bulking day by day,it reduces his speed hence it affects his creativity…Ashly young played far better than Depay…For dutch players who play Manu is playing only beacuse of LVG and his loyalty..its not about merit..young and adreas peira,and Januzaj are much betetr fit in this team than depay ….
    Blind should look in to spot with Schinderlin-Carrcik-Bastein–Blind for 2 holding mid spot..thats the best for Blind and Manu…i Cannt blame Blind for goals,Blind lacks strentgh and height to outmuscle some player,which he is lacking will repeat it whenever he faces same senario..
    Young——-Fellaini——Januzaj
    ————-Rooney————–
    ——Blind——-snhiderlin——
    Shaw—–Mcnair—Smalling—-Darmian
    ————–Cillessen————–
    seems the best 11 for Manu…

  87. Rooney played poorly for sure. Bastian Schweinsteiger also IMO. Would Van Persie had made a diff with those missed chances? 🙂
    Actually I felt Blind made some good interceptions and forward passes which initiated opportunities. If Rooney and Mata had taken their gilt edged opportunities in the first and early 2nd half, this game would have been out of sight for Swansea.
    Man U plays compact and utilized the wings a lot with players making movement for openings. Opposing teams are limited to little opportunities. All these are typical LVG’s teams. What I feel the team is lacking is a player which the creative spark or which can create something out of nothing. That’s why LVG is looking at players such as Ronaldo, Robben, Muller etc.
    Actually I think one player will fit…Ibrahimovic. 🙂

  88. i think wilson is saying Blind is exposed when midfeild coallpsed…i dont think Blind is exposed due to that…Blind is exposed to lack of physical attributes.though tried his level best with smartness to keep that..Gomis was playing at him always..which is not a nice seen,forget about goals even in the end even Romero could have saved it..its not about goals or mistakes…its about beaten with humiliation..due to lack of strength,,and and overrated Depay.
    We need singraven,Berghuis and Co on wings Depay would be a great impact sub..

      1. Vurnon anita is playing nice,Leory fer can be beast in holding mid…its all about building and finding the right players..if Van beek and Vletman can play very good DM…
        With already Hendrix and Ake we are players in waiting..ake would have been ready by now had he not joined chelshit academy.were players get killed insteaed of developing..

    1. Yes, thanks, but if there is an error where the DMs leave opp strikers to run at his CBs, then why would the answer to combat this be to sign a new CB?
      That’s what doesn’t make sense. Wilson basically repeated my analysis but made it be anti-Blind and anti-LvG.

      Also, I think we each might be using the word exposed to mean different things..;)

  89. Blind got exposed because Swansea played the long pass over the defensive midfield trying to isolate Blind against a much faster and stronger forward.

    But he’s not the reason why Man Utd lost. It feels LvG doesn’t learn from his mistakes. His last stint at Bayern, he did not buy good defenders and he ended up paying for it. His last two jobs, he really had Arjen Robben bail him out and that’s why he really wanted to get him to Manchester United.

    1. Steve I hope the above is s much clear version of what I was trying to say.

      Also Im having some problem with auto correct. working on it, but either way Im more concerned about NT rather than Man United. The funny thing his everybody knows Blinds weaknesses but yet that aspect of his game is being kept under wraps jus because he is playing for Man U.the question here is how long and the game vs Swansea was jus a first hand glimpse of what to expect from him in those kind of situations.

      I can see him playing upfront where he can use his distribution phase of play to link up with strikers like Huntelaar and Dost but Defense, way to vulnerable. (Wingback)

      1. 1. Not at all what you said
        2. in neither of swansea’s goals did the ball go over the DMs, the passes went right through them and on the floor, so I guess I disagree with the first half of wissors comment, but the second part is interesting, except I’m not so sure LvG has tried to bring Robben to Man Utd.
        3. I don’t care about your auto correct problem, your mistakes are funny to me and I enjoy laughing at you, since you obviously don’t care you should laugh too
        4. you still misunderstand, it’s not your assessment of the play (which I basically agree with) that didn’t make sense to me, it is just the connection you make to those plays having anything to do with Blind.
        5. of course Blind has weaknesses, every player does and a managers job to try and make the team become more than the sum of just the individuals. So it’s the same for every player, so then every player must be “under wraps” as you say.
        6. Blind is not to blame for the goals (as you said earlier), so if that’s a “first hand glimpse” of what we can expect from him, then isn’t that good news? haha
        7. It’s fine that you don’t like Blind but you are jumping on comments and turning them into anti-Blind rants. He’s actually not my first choice for any of the 3 positions he plays, if we were 100% fit, but I’ll defend him since you have no real substance to your claims
        8. I dread the moment where Blind makes a mistake and is directly responsible for a goal (which is inevitable, happens to the best as well) and you will pretend as if you predicted it.
        9. Blind will probably never play attacking mid, and Dost is not in the lineup anymore.
        10. This whole think doesn’t matter because Blind will probably start as the CDM anyways. Haha

        1. The Wilson guy is an idiot, Steve. Plain and ‘simple’, literally.

          We all know it.

          He lacks the very basic intelligence required to construct a rational thought – much less the skills needed to post said thought on the internet.
          It was painfully embarrassing for a time, but to be fair to the clown, it has now become a comedy in itself.
          In fact, I come here every day JUST to read Wilson’s brainless anti-Blind rants and laugh at them. I’m not sure what axe he has to grind, but I suspect he’s just a very, very jealous little boy, with a very narrow, unsatisfying life.

          At this stage his delusional repetitions are getting so desperate and illogical that I wonder for his sanity! – I mean, where does he go from here??

          I’d pity him if he wasn’t such a clown. Instead, you’ve gotta laugh. You’ve GOTTA laugh. It’s so non-sensical it’s now transcended into pure farce!!

          I hope he keeps it up! But I doubt he has the imagination.

          1. Well if he is not a imposinator, then hopefully he is not your rooter either coz he certainly likes you STYLE.

          2. Haha I couldn’t tell if you meant impersonator or imposter.. either way, now we know who the clown is.

          3. Bahahaha hilarious urban dictionary!
            Imposinator “by Phakade July 24, 2010”
            So then, what person pretending to be someone else was Krab pretending to be?

        2. As I said I’m more concerned about Blind in NT rather than at Man U coz Danny neither have the luxury of players like Van Gaal to keep Daley a float nor is he broad like Van Gaal.

          Again Yes I said I don’t blame Daley Blind for the goals Swansea, but then again as the last line of defense you cant except him to lead the line but jus be a shadow and this is what I referenced to as the first hand glimpse of what to except from him in those kind of situations where its requires do or die interventions as a last line of defense.

          Anti Blind rants, naaaaa its Anti Blind facts.

  90. Ajax have been handed Celtic, Fenerbahce and Molde of Norway in Europa League.Business as usual for them, but should be interesting pool.

    Groningen will host,Olympique Marseille (France),Braga (Portugal),Liberec (Czech Republic)

    while AZ Alkmaar are with ,Athletic Bilbao (Spain)
    Augsburg (Germany),Partizan Belgrade (Serbia)

  91. My mate down in Southampton told me that van Dijk already passed his medical and signed for 13.5 million pounds last night…for some reason it wasnt announced publicly?!

    1. Well I think he will have to prove his worth at Southampton if this news in true as most critics are labeling it as being overpriced given his performance at European stage compared to in Scottish league. I think this is where he has been overlooked by selectors for NT.

  92. meanwhile Real Betis have quietly put together a pretty cool team?

    #7 Joaquín
    #9 Ricky van Wolfswinkel
    #11 Juan Manuel Vargas
    #17 Heiko Westermann
    #18 Alfred N’Diaye
    #23 Rafael van der Vaart

  93. iF DUTCH COACHES DROPS left foot CB crap…then they wont consider Blind over there…if not i think Bruma,Kongolo and Reikik would be better LCB than blind…So NT doesnt lack or short in that area. even Virjil and Jeiro can play LCB.
    LVG is sticking with lfet foot crap…sinec we have seen Terry is so right footed and he plays at LCB with Cahil as RCB….Vidic was mighty right footed player at LCB with Ferdinand in RCB….
    So this ridiculous crap theory must be dropped for CB position,….it only works for LB i mean especially when in comes to crossing in final third…
    For me defenders must be fast,strong,and agile with good anticipation and reading of game…Blind issue in genetic that he is not strong which is basic eligibility to play as CB in competitive games..
    Blind is a bright player who can run box to box..with surper vision which very rare in many current stupid players.for me he is best as Box to box
    Had ginkel stayed in NT Ginkel would have developed furthur..
    Williams—-Luuk——-Roben
    ——-Blind—-Ginkel——–
    ———–Hendrix———-
    kongolo–Reikik–Devrij—-Tete
    ———Cillessen/Krul———
    ===================================
    Depay——-Dost——-Wijladum
    ——klassen—Clasie———
    ———-Anita—————-
    Jairo—–Vrijil–Vanbeek–kevin dijks
    ————gks

  94. Strootman tweeted, “There has been a lot of speculation in the media about my rehabilitation. Unfortunately due to a lack of power in my left leg I cannot compete at the highest level right now.”

    “The last few weeks we have consulted many top professors all over the world and they and the medical staff of AS Roma have advised me to reconstruct the existing acl into another position in order for me to have less problems with my knee in the future and to regain my power again. I will undergo surgery this morning.”

    “I am hugely disappointed that I cannot contribute to AS Roma and the Dutch National Team for the next few months but I will do everything to get back on the pitch as soon as possible.”

  95. Here is a list of Dutchmen in Champions League

    Group A
    van der Wiel and PSG versus Madrid, Shaktar and Malmö

    Group B*
    PSV Eindhoven versus Memphis & Blind and Man Utd, Dost at Wolfsburg, and CSKA

    Group C
    Sneijder and Galatasaray, Ould-Chikh and Benfica versus Atletico and Astana

    Group E
    Strootman and Roma (hopefully they make later rounds) versus Barca, Leverkusen, Bate

    Group F
    Robben and Bayern versus, Arsenal, Olympiacos, Zagreb

    Group G
    Martins Indi and Porto versus Chelsea, Kyiv, and Tel Aviv

    Group H
    Zenit Valencia Lyon and Gent

    Group D
    Brouwers at Monchengladbach versus Juve, Man City, and Sevilla

  96. and this is all you need to know about in the Europa League

    Group A
    Ajax versus, RvP and Fenerbahce, Boerrigter and Celtic, and Molde

    Group F
    Groningen versus Rekik and Marsielle

    Group G
    de Vrij, Kishna, Hoedt & Braafheid and Lazio

    Group I
    Boetius and Basel

    Group K
    Huntelaar with Shalke

    Group L
    AZ versus Verhaegh and Augsburg

  97. lineup prediction for thursday Home to Iceland.. :/

    cillessen
    vdW – de Vrij – Martins Indi – Kongolo
    Wijnaldum – Blind – Sneijder
    Robben – RvP – Memphis

    a little nervous!

    1. De vrij-wijnaldum,sneijder-Blind would be class..roben is getting rusty..
      Van der weil and BMI at back—my comment–suicide
      RVP—-Old lion with out teeths up front.
      Memphis—Cannot comment..as he is lucky that there is no compettion in his spot.
      Kongolo—man to watch..feel safe with him..at LB
      No BMI
      Weil and RVP plz.
      With roben,RVP,Memphis and Sneider team looks less pacy and would be static and there would be no urgency and we dont have anyone up front who has the lungs to chase the ball..

  98. Looking at head to head, you expect Iceland to be the under dogs given they are on the brink of a major qualification and with the current generation of players that they have, you can except them to have more edge over NT.

    While on the other hand playing at home should lift the NT player and bring out the hunger in them.

    1. Iceland would be better team if we play RVP,weil,BMi and Afellay,thats for sure,even mighty roben cannt help this team when these guys are around…
      Our Biggest miss is Jetro williams..i prefer Lenz over RVP upfront..or least Luuk dejong or Hunter.

  99. Also there is only one setback for Icelanders with midfielder Emil Hallfredsson missing the game due to injury. Apart from him, the lineup should be same as VS Czech.