Tag: Klopp

by Jan

On the Road to Qatar: Virgil van Dijk

The 31st year old has never played on a big tournament. The World Cup would be the realisation of his boyhood dream. And as skipper of Oranje, he will lead the team out. He discovered himself at Liverpool. A heavy knee injury might have delayed his debut at a Tournament with capital T, but he came back as if nothing happened.

Virgil can come across lacklustre. Lazy even. That was the comment on scouting reports from Ajax scouts, some 12 years ago. Complacent. This was the case then and it’s still the case now. His biggest strength is also his biggest pitfall. When he does make a mistake, he will hear that he was trying to solve the problem without getting his jersey dirty. Van Dijk does not throw his energy around but tries to solve problems by positioning smarter and making the right choices. Nothing arrogant about that.

Take that goal Man United scored. Sancho chopped inside. Milner slides past, while Becker dove to the wrong corner of the goal. Sancho simply passed the ball in the other corner. All this time, Van Dijk was ball watching with his arms behind his back. Milner was seen in close up after the goal was scored, scolding Virgil for not throwing his body on the line. But Virgil did what he always does. He’s always trying to organise so that flying tackles aren’t needed. He is like the CEO amongst defenders. He makes sure others do their job, so he doesn’t need to do it.

When Klopp was asked about the contributions of Van Dijk, in his first season, he answered: “Influential. Very very very influential”.  On December 27, there is a sort of public holiday in Liverpool. The Virgil’s Arrival Day. When he finally came over from Southampton, for 85 million euros. Where the amount is constantly dug up when Maguire makes another mistake, this Virgil transfer fee is simply a foot note.

As Klopp put it: “Thanks to Virgil, we can defend differently. Higher up the pitch. We can make the playing field smaller now.”

When he returned after his injury, the Daily Mail asked him if he was back to normal and he nodded yes. What people didn’t realise, and Virgil was a bit taken aback with that fact, is that he had to literally learn how to walk again! While his team mates were playing football and had their summer break or the Euros, Virgil was working like a beast, all by himself. He didn’t want to hurry his recovery by focusing on the Euros, knowing how tough it is to get back from this crucial injury.

“Everyone seemed to think it was normal that I got back at my level. As if nothing had happened. Based on my research, being able to get back at your normal level is not something that can be expected. And I’m not a spring chicken anymore either, so I felt that I could have received a bit more positive feedback than I did, as I started to play in every single game again…” His colleagues in England did give him the kudos he deserved, by picking him as the only non creative player in the list of nominees for Player of the Year (along side Salah , Mane, C Ronaldo, Kane and De Bruyne).

Check the personal duels won by Big Virgil. 

Virgil was asked during a presser with Oranje and Van Gaal whether he was able to hear any of the commands from the side-line, usually given by Danny Blind at Oranje or Klopp at Liverpool. “No, I am too loud myself, so I can’t hear the coaches yell at me, hahaha”. And it’s true, Pep Lijnders once said he sits more comfortable if he can hear Van Dijk’s bassoon in the stadium. He is the command centre of the Liverpool build up.

As the CEO of the Liverpool defence, he has ample tasks. After he went from Groningen to Celtic, he was described as a big unit (a wardrobe is the literal translation) with imposing physical qualities. And yes he is tall and yes he can head a ball.  Lijnders always says you need to really run around him if you want to get past him. But he’s not a very physical defender. He’s not like Man United’s Martinez or Mathijs de Ligt who love some Greek Romanian wrestling. With all the space in Virgil’s back, he needs to conduct the defence. And make sure it’s all fine tuned and in sync. It’s a balancing act, as he himself is usually situation on the halfway line. In the Big Five competitions, there is no team that was able to play the offside as much as Liverpool, last season.

It does fail at times and when it does fail, it looks really amateuristic. But, Klopp wants it like this and if there are mistakes made, it’s just par for the course. Because overall, it will work often very well and it allows every Liverpool player to be part of the attacking flow.

Van Dijk is a mind reader. He plays mainly with his brains. He tries to get into the head of the forward and he slows their attack. He won’t “bite” immediately, he will simply slow things down so his mates can track back. He basically pushes the pause button. He delays his decisions and actions, he pushes the opponent to the sides, with his running pattern and he hardly ever needs a foul or a tackle, even. He’s strong, very good in the air, relatively fast, technically solid and he oozes confidence.

Unbeaten record at home. Cool to see two other Dutchies and one former Dutch Eredivisie player (Alex) in the mix. Virgil NEVER lost a home game in the PL.

It’s probably his intelligence that makes the real difference. He can organise his defence in such a way that the opponent’s forwards think they’re always a step too late. The magic is in his timing. He developed a masterful sense of timing, when to press up, when to drop back. How to offer cover, when to mark and how to push a forward to the sides. He has the highest winning % in personal duels in the Premier League and it’s not a coincidence. He’s like Mr Charisma, the ability to foresee the moves of the opponent and to almost attract them to do what Virgil wants.

Lijnders: “We knew he would be a direct contributor as an individual player, but he also contributes indirectly, by making other players better.”

We all know Virgil’s story. A lazy right back at Willem II when he was 16 years old. Nothing special . When he turned 17, he suddenly grew another 18 centimerers. And his life changed. Grads Fuhler, scout of Groningen (now at FC Emmen), saw him play by coincidence. Fuhler was on his way to a game in Belgium and realised Willem II A1 played PSV A1 so he took the Tilburg exit. A week later, Virgil and mum were on their way to Groningen to sign for the local FC.

At Groningen 2, he spent a lot of time on the bench. His coach, Dick Lukkien (now head coach at FC Emmen) spent a lot of time on Virgil, who was still complacent. Lukkien desired more from the player and slowly but surely, Van Dijk started to change his mentality. The Top 3 didn’t see it in him, although Ronald Koeman was keen to sign him for Feyenoord. There was no money though. Ajax decided to get Mike van der Hoorn from FC Utrecht. At Celtic, he made some crucial steps but it was when Koeman was able to sign him for Southampton that the Oranje captain started to thrive. Both Lukkien and Koeman are mentioned by Virgil when asked which coaches were instrumental in his career.

If you ask English fans who were or are the best defenders ever in the PL, his name is mentioned, alongside players like Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Tony Adams and Nemanja Vidic. Not bad for a player who never played a big Tournie.

Ironically, Virgil is now the captain of the WC squad under a coach who in 2014 decided to leave him home. Van Gaal said he saw the same mistakes being made over and over again and decided to take Martins Indi, Stefan de Vrij and Ron Vlaar. Willem Vissers interviewed Van Gaal who said more negative things about Van Dijk. After the interview, Van Gaal instructed Vissers to delete these comments. Vissers can not remember exactly what the current team manager said, but it was something like “he doesn’t press forward enough, and he doesn’t see players running in behind, he is simply not good enough…”. Van Gaal did say in 2019 that Van Dijk has the personality to instil fear in his opponents.

Van Dijk says something interesting in the book “Thou Shall Not Pass: The Anatomy of Football’s Centre-Half”: “I want my opponents to think everything I do is easy for me. Look at Roger Federer. He doesn’t even break a sweat, or so it seems. Mentally, that will be tough for the opponents. They think Federer doesn’t even need to work hard. I try to do this too.”

The Liverpudlians call him VVD. Superman on Anfield. Mr Cook. With Van Dijk in the team, they hardly ever lose at home.

When Virgil made his first entrance in the Oranje squad, he was in awe of Robben and Kuyt. He was observing them. How they acted, what they ate, how they behaved. As kid, he wanted to be Ronaldinho and he thought Jaap Stam was two meters tall. The World Cup was millions of miles away from the kid in Breda. Virgil became his version of Ronaldinho.  Now, kids in England and Holland dream of being Virgil van Dijk.  In Liverpool, he’s a demi God.

Virgil’s debut.

It was a different time. Oranje at a historic trough. The Euros of 2016 are out of sight. In the final away game versus Kazachstan, coach Danny Blind gives Virgil a chance, alongside debutant Kenny Tete. The game is won, 1-2 but three days later, the Czechs are too strong in the JC Arena. Oranje ends 4th behind the Czechs, Iceland and Turkey. Blind played: Krul, Riedewald, Bruma, Van Dijk, Tete; Wijnaldum, Blind, Sneijder; Depay, El Ghazi, Huntelaar.

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by Jan

Cruyff: no striker in the box!

H all, a personal note before I start this JC article… I will be traveling in the coming month as one of my dear family members in Europe will need support :-(. I will be posting less regularly, but will do my best to keep the good stuff coming.

May I ask you to have a look at the donation options on the site? Traveling to Europe is pretty expensive these days ;-).

JC: “You can only rotate when one position is not taken. That position needs to be the central striker.”

It was the time of Denis Law, the agile Scot who scored 237 goals for Man United. The times of the golden left of Gigi Riva, scoring one goal per match for the Italians or Der Bomber, Gerd Muller, scoring 500 goals for Bayern Munich! It was the early 70s, a great time for goal scorers. Strikers who only needed one or two touches to tap a ball in. The Dutch had a number of them: Dick van Dijk, Ruud Geels, Willy van der Kuylen, Dick Nanninga…

There were three types of strikers: the mercurial fast ones (Rene van de Kerkhof), the player with the thunder in the thighs (Willy van der Kuylen) and the tall lighthouse target man (Dick Nanninga). Ideally, you had one striker who had this all (Haaland).

And, a striker was always your most advanced man and he was judged on goals.

Cruyff came onto the field as a strange #9. He was never in the point. And he still scored goal after goal after goal. Between 1966 and 1972 he would never score less than 33 goals per season. But the real impact of JC was not as a goal getter of course. His biggest impact was the fact that as a #9, he was hardly ever to be found in that most advanced position.

Johan Cruyff led the line in a way that other players could flourish in the areas vacated by him. The two-footed dribble king was to be found everywhere else. As the playmaker, or as libero, or coming from the left. He called himself, the “playing central striker”. Cruyff’s ability to be that wandering striker made him crucial for the execution of Oranje’s Total Football. Oranje would play people off the pitch with any player able to play on any position. Right wingers became strikers, right full backs ended up as left winger and the central striker became the deep lying playmaker. It was all being done.

Finding the space was sacred. No one was playing on the position as laid out on the line up board in the dressing room! Cruyff would start in the #9 role but would immediately drift away. He went wherever he felt like it. “A little wander here, a little movement there, playing along a bit and then explode into action.”

Watching Feyenoord, Ajax and Oranje play in the early 70s is really fun. Opponents have no idea how to deal with it. Man markers would follow JC across the pitch and ended up leaving huge holes in their defence. Or they simply allowed JC the freedom of the pitch, which is never a good idea against someone with his dribbling skills.

Cruyff’s teams always dominated the ball. There were always ample players around the ball. Ajax and Oranje dominated in that middle zone, which is still sacred in football tactics. The maestro’s partnership with Rep, Rensenbrink and Neeskens in 1974 was phenomenal. These three could score at will helped by the open spaces left by Cruyff.

The legendary #14 explains it in 1977: “There are people who believe I should play in midfield. They don’t get it. The remarkable thing about our football is: everyone is on the move, always. And it starts with me. I start as a striker but leave that space, which starts the big rondo. The defenders of the opponent are now in trouble. Because we come at them from various angles. If they mark me, others will get more space. If they don’t mark me, well… bring it on. They end up always having one defender too few.”

The traditional #9 got replaced by the False 9. The traditional 9 was told: stay high up the pitch, hold on to the ball, go deep and mainly: score. The False 9 is a high playing playmaker, who is focused on the team rotation and performance.

When Cruyff quit his active career, it seemed the false 9 disappeared too. Strikers like Nanninga, of Kees Kist or Peter Houtman and later Wim Kieft brought Oranje back to the traditional 9. Only when Cruyff returned to Barcelona in 1988 was the False 9 back. The Dream Team.

In 1989, Michael Laudrup was seen as one of the most elegant players in football but it wouldn’t happen for him in Italy. He used to play left winger or #10. Stoichkov was Barca’s #9 but Cruyff put the explosive Romanian on the wing and placed Laudrup in the striker role.

Cruyff was obsessed with creating triangles, and we’re not talking about the musical version of it. With Ronald Koeman as libero, Guardiola as defensive mid, attacking midfielder Bakero and striker Laudrup he had a spine in his team which could pass themselves out of danger. Barca’s dream team resembles the Tiqui-Taca team of Guardiola decennia later.

It was Guardiola who used the best player ever ™ as the false striker in his team. The birth day of the Star of Superstar was May 9, 2009. In Pep’s first season, Barca was four points adrift from Real Madrid. On day 34, El Classico was on the program and the pressure on Guardiola was immense. Barca missed the title two seasons in a row now and the 2-2 at Valencia on the 33rd playing day added to the pressure. And so, Guardiola called Messi, the night before the game. Could Leo maybe drop in for a bit?

At 10.30 pm, the 21 year old Lionel Messi enters Pep’s office. Marti Perarnau, the author of “Pep Confidential” explains the situation as such: “The 21 year old enters and Pep shows him a video. He freezes the video and shows Messi the space on the pitch. He wants Messi to work in these spaces. He calls it “the Messi Zone”. And he tells Messi: “I want you to start from the wing, as per normal. But when I signal you, I want you to dart through the middle. And when Xavi or Iniesta have the ball, you go. Straight ahead, and you’ll be face to face with Casillas.”

Pep didn’t tell anyone about this. He only told his assistant Vilanova the day before the match. Xavi and Iniesta were told during the warming up. What followed was a master class of football, with a 2-6 win at the Bernabeu for Barca. Samuel Eto’o suddenly played on the right wing and Messi would drift in and out of the zone where the older and massive Madrid defence would be. Xavi would later comment: “Pep changed the whole plan. With Messi as false 9, with Henry and Eto’o in the half spaces, forcing the defenders to decide. Leo, Andres and I could dominate in this way. It was one of the best games in my career.”

Barca would win the the triple that year. In the CL finals v Man United, he used the same trick. Eto’o started centrally but after 10 minutes he switched with Messi, who would win the finals for Barca with a header!

For quite some time, the false 9 was ignored or even forgotten by the rest of the football world. Through the decennia we have seen amazing #9s, from Papin to Zlatan, from Van Nistelrooy to Benzema, from Lewandowski to Peter Crouch, from Raul to Shearer and from Berbatov to Henke Larsson… But in 2022, we do see shifts. The “playing central striker” would be a good moniker maybe? At Liverpool, their #9 ( Firmino) usually plays in service of the danger men on the wings (Salah and Mane). At Cheslea, Lukaku warms the bench often while wandering Havartz is often preferred. At City we see different false 9s all the time, from Phil Foden to Sterling to De Bruyne.

Cruyff was ahead of his time, as we all know. Every modern team these days, is looking for a type of Cruyff striker. A player who can let the team play better by being absent.

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by Jan

Skipper Wijnaldum eternal optimist

Jurgen Klopp gave him a tremendous compliment: “The successes of this Liverpool were partly built on the legs, lungs, brains and heart of Gini Wijnaldum!”.

After his 75th cap against Georgia, Wijnaldum chats with VI.

It’s busy times in the heat in Lagos, Portugal. Wijnaldum takes his job as Oranje player and skipper serious. But he was also dealing with a new club, a new future. And where the whole football world believed Barcelona was going to reunite the former Sparta talent with Ronald Koeman, PSG swooped in with a sensational offer and Wijnaldum couldn’t resist. Although, officially, he will not yet formally declare where he’ll play next season: “I want to talk about Oranje now. The only thing I can say is: I will play elsewhere next season.”

What is the key determining factor in picking a new club?

“My intuition. Always. It never left me. And that is fueled by the conversations you have, why do they want you, what is their football vision, who play there now, etc. I go over all that, and at some point my inner gut tells me what to do. I went from Feyenoord to PSV, because I felt I wasn’t ready for a foreign club. When I left for Newcastle, most people wondered why, but it was the perfect step for me. I think you can still mess up when you follow that guidance, but than at least it was on your own terms.”

You started as a playmaker, a #10. Then you became a right winger, and at Liverpool you played holding mid, right back, left winger, everything. What is your next step?

“Goalie? Hahaha, no I don’t think I can learn that. But I get your point. I have transformed as a player and I can play in different roles. They say a player is ready with learning when he’s 30 years old. I think it is BS. I still want to learn and develop. I want to improve and learn new skills and go new heights.”

Do you plan your career?

“Yes, but intuitively. Not literally. Young players ask me for advice, as people tell them that Gini made the right steps. And they come and ask me about their careers and I don’t know, you know. Everyone is different and need to follow their own journey. What I have done might not be best for Frenkie or for Gravenberch. It’s also important to realise where you are now. I was at Feyenoord, young still. It was a tough time, there wasn’t a lot of money, we struggled in Europe, and to go to a big club from that situation wouldn’t work. Frenkie and Mathijs excelled in the Champions League with Ajax. You’ll have a different start with your new club in that situation. Their move to a big club worked for them.”

Why are you leaving Liverpool?

“This is not working for me. We are starting the Euros. I want to talk about Oranje. Now is not the time to discuss Liverpool. I will explain my decisions, but after the Euros.”

But what a beautiful farewell they gave you!

“I know, I was fighting back the tears. I didn’t know this! I am still emotional about it you know. I realised then and there: this was my last match for Liverpool. And a lot of players left before me, who haven’t been offered such a send off, so they made me feel special.”

And therefore: why are you leaving Liverpool??

“That is the problem: people look at this from the outside, and don’t get it. Supporters plead with me to renew but there is more. It’s not about Liverpool or the contract, but I need to explain this after the Euros. The people at Liverpool that I worked with, and my team mates, they know and they understood. And that was all that mattered to me.”

Back to Oranje. You were one of the few who was at the World Cup 2014…

“The World Cup Brazil, 2014… That sounds like a long time ago, 7 years. Crazy! Those two missed tournaments, they still hurt. Normally, you would be there, as international. Missing one tournament is maybe acceptable, every 20 or 30 years, but two in a row? I couldn’t watch those tournaments. I was on holidays. But even that felt wrong, I was supposed to be playing matches with the NT.”

But, you remained positive about Oranje, always.

“Of course. I was in training with these guys, and I can see what quality we have. And I could see what was coming. I knew, this will come good. And not just the quality of the squad is important, also the vibe in the group. And that vibe is very good. It’s like we were in Brazil. A real tight squad, we would do everything together. That disappeared a bit after the World Cup and Koeman was able to bring it back. And when you win, well…that is the best medicine of course. The way we are currently as a team, it really reminds me of the 2014 days.”

How important is the role of the National Team manager in this?

“Very. I met Edgar Davids in Brazil, he was at the tournament. He wanted to know how we liked or disliked working under Van Gaal. And I told him, it was cool. We could go for a stroll and our kids and wives were present close by and we were allowed to go to the beach every now and then… Edgar couldn’t believe it! He said they were never allowed anything under Van Gaal. So Van Gaal realised what the impact was back then and decided to allow us to have fun and take responsibility. And it worked. And when we lost the semis and had to play Brazil for the third place, I happen to speak to Cocu, my coach at PSV. I called him for some pre-season details and he said they let their “little finals” go, back in 1998. They were so peeved that they lost the semi finals, resulting in them also losing the little finals and ending fourth. We wanted to win that bronze medal desperately, also for Van Gaal. And when we got that, we were all super proud: third of the world. And you could see Van Gaal loved to have one too. The dynamics between coaches and players in Brazil was top!”

You played 5-3-2 in Brazil and you played a holding role. Under Koeman, playing 4-3-3, you started to really make a strong impression. And now under De Boer, that 5-3-2 returns. You must be disappointed?

“It’s not secret, I prefer the 4-3-3 with myself in a more forward role. That was a good system under Koeman, but I think it was more the impact of Frenkie de Jong in our team. The minute he came into the team, he took care of the build up and we could focus on our role more forward, as midfielders. And if something slipped through, we had a Van Dijk or a De Ligt still.”

So?

“I don’t mind playing 5-3-2 or 3-5-3, I do get space to run into, although for me, it requires more energy, more running, because you miss a forward. You will always have to run into that space as midfielder. But, it shouldn’t be about me. It’s about winning. We have enough players who can play this system and I can play it too. And Italy away is proof that we can make it work.”

But Italy is a strong nation. We also play North-Macedonia!

“I know! And the coach said, he’ll consider the system per match, per opponent. But sometimes we – Dutch fans – think to simple about the opponents. Everyone thinks we’ll win easily vs Ukraine. But that is a mistake. That is a strong nation. They beat Spain, back in October. You’re not a pancake team if you beat Spain.”

You are currently the skipper, with Van Dijk out of contention. Does De Boer discuss his tactics with you?

“Yes I did and I do. But I am not going to tell De Boer something because it suits me. We need to trust the coach, like he needs to trust us. If he says: this is the system I want to play, than it’s our job to make sure we execute it. We had quite a good flow under Koeman in the Nations League games, but with Corona and those stop and start periods last season, we seemed to have lost some of the flow. You saw it against Poland and Turkey. Key things went wrong. And that wasn’t just us. France, Spain, Germany, they all struggled a bit at times. I think the 5-3-2 will give us a bit of handles, some more stability maybe.”

Did you feel for Ronald Koeman, the way it went in Barcelona for him in the past weeks?

“I don’t like what I read. I wasn’t there, but based on the media reports, I felt… really? Is this how you deal with these things? I think it’s a pity. These things need to be dealt with with grace and respect. A sad aspect of our world.”

Do you miss Virgil?

“Of course! Already, yes. He is important to us and not just on the pitch. As a personality, he’s a real leader. A commander. He would have been able to join you know. I think it would have been possible for him to maybe be fit for a semi finals or finals, should we get there. But he refused, as he also doesn’t want to push out any player who will have carried us to that semi finals or finals. He is a professional, he does choose for his health now, but he also realises that every player needs to be 100%. For the dynamics in the team. You can’t carry players, it might disrupt the unity in the team. He made the right call.”

You are now the Oranje skipper. What does that mean to you?

“Oh wow, it’s amazing. I was talking about this with Salah, who will most likely be the new Egypt captain. It’s such an honour to represent your country as a player. Wow. It’s also a responsibility, and you need the trust from the other players. I feel their trust. But we have more leaders in our dressing room and on the pitch. Memphis is a true leader. He also leads by example, like Virgil. But Marten de Roon is also a dominant voice. Kevin Strootman is also a real captain on the pitch. He learned from DeRossi, hahaha. I played matches along side Kevin, where I wore the band, but he was the real leader.”

You are the captain of a pretty young and inexperienced team…

“Yes, the coach thinks we are currently in the top 8 of Europe. Between 5 and 8, he says. And I get that. When you put the squad lists together, most big nations have more experience as we missed two tournaments. We have 17 players in the squad without big tournament experience.”

What can you tell them?

“That you will have to grow into the tournament. I witnessed it in Brazil and experienced it. Firstly, you need to be top fit. 100% fit. And you need to be ready from the first second. You can’t “feel your way” into the tournament. You need to take all the positives, the courage, the pace and start in 6th gear, in terms of focus and commitment. And build on your wins.”

Have you been vaccinated already?

“Whoa, no comment! Medical privacy. I will not get involved in that vaccination debate. Every one can decide for himself. You want one, fine. You don’t, fine too. Your right. This is the way with Liverpool and with Oranje. I won’t play a role in moving people a certain way in an ethical decision.”

Sunday, Ukraine. The first Oranje match in the Euros, with supporters!

“A Euros tournament without fans is not a real Euros. I am so happy and look forward to it so much. It feels like we are closing the book on a bad dream while opening a new bright story line…”

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by Jan

“Ajax’s biggest game ever”

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

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

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

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

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

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

What can we expect tomorrow?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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by Jan

You voted: Virgil van Dijk, Dutch International of 2018

Well guys, not a big surprise. I think Virgil got twice as many votes as the number 2. I respect your choices of course.

You all nicely kept the blog up to date this last week or so, while I was slaving away to make some bucks to maintain this blog (hint hint) you kept us up to speed with the different draws, the Liverpool-Everton derby and more. Thanks.

The man who got the assist vs Everton (….) won the poll and will be our first “Dutch Best International of the Year”. A new “thing” on our blog. And as promised, an interview with the new Captain Fantastic. Thanks to Blendle.com and the amazing sports magazine Helden (Heroes), by Frits and Barbara Barend.

What a year is was for Virgil van Dijk. This time last year, the big money move to Liverpool, becoming the most expensive defender on the planet. Then, five months later playing the Champions League finals. And Ronald Koeman named him captain of the new Oranje, while Klopp also gave him the band, most recently vs Everton. Life is kind for Virgil.

And the new skipper of Oranje is now a big man in England. Walking the streets in his town is not longer an option and every great pass or every failed pass will be accompanied by commentary about the fee Liverpool paid for him. 85 mio euros, in case you forgot. When we meet him at the Liverpool training complex, he is the perfect host. “Can I get you something to drink?” And when he sees some kids who won a prize to watch Liverpool’s practice session, he goes to them, puts his arms around them for a selfie and laughs. “What is better than giving children the day of their lives…?”

For the photo session, Virgil looks straight in the lens, with his hair in the typical Virgil man-bun. Can we get one without the hair tie? “I usually wear my hair loose at home, but once I’m going to the club, the hair tie goes in. But, if you make some good pics, I’ll let my hair out.” And during the photo session, he talks passionately. “There is no better job in the world than pro football player, at Liverpool and Oranje. What can be better? Yes, we have moments when it’s tough, or you’r tired but I do all I can to see the fun side of it all. This is so special and it is only for a short time, really. So it’s key to enjoy every minute.”

Lots of athletes forget to enjoy it, as they always have to deal with pressure…

Virgil: “I don’t have that. I don’t suffer the pressure, must be tough to have that. And it becomes easier, in some way. The Liverpool move should have added pressure probably, but it’s not. When you’re young, you tend to think about all that can go wrong, I don’t have that anymore. I know what is important in life.”

What is that?

“Family! When my family is happy and doing well, I am too. Football really is number 2 for me. Family is always #1. En that will always be that way. My daughters give me so much. And my wife is the centre of the family. She is the playmaker, haha. And I value her tremendously. A footballer’s wife always needs to be strong, positive and happy. I realise this. But we simply can’t stroll through the park, or go out for a glass of wine. We are still young, but we never go out. The first two weeks in Liverpool, we were at this hotel and within a day, the media, paparazzi and the fans were in the hotel lobby. So, in all seriousness, I am not going into the city, ever. But, I am not complaining, the benefits outweigh the negatives by a country mile, hahaha.”

Does Mrs Van Dijk work?

“No, we decided that she wouldn’t. If she really would want to, sure, I would never stop her, but we train at different times, so it could be that I’m away at night while she works in the morning and it would be hard to have a relationship. We like it as it is.”

In what way were you influenced by the fact that your dad left the family when you were so young?

“That plays a role. For sure. What exactly happened is private and I won’t tell the media. It’s nobody’s business. But my father is no longer in my life. That definitely plays a role in how I am with my kids. I will never abandon my kids. Never. I will always be there for them.”

Do your girls know exactly what daddy does for a living?

“Ha, well the youngest….no. She is two years old, but the oldest does know. Whenever people line up for autographs, she will say “Daddy needs to do some signing”. Recently we were at Disneyland and people wanted a picture, so she is like “Daddy needs to make a selfie with people” hahaha. And we have our family box at Anfield and she is there when we play. I wave at her when I enter the pitch and she waves back.”

You never seem to publish photos of yourself with the family?

“That is on purpose. I will not share anything private on social media. They don’t have a say in this and I don’t want them to become the kid of a famous dad or something. We keep information and photos to ourselves. And you know, it’s not just the fans who want to see these pics, there are also the haters, you know.”

Back to the past: you basically grew up next to the NAC stadium in Breda, but never player for NAC.

“Well I did, once when I was seven. I had a practice session there with two friends. We had had a youth coach who was yelling and screaming all the time. I was scared of the guy. And I decided I didn’t wanna go to NAC, hahaha. I couldn’t handle that. I was a wee kid, really little. And two weeks later I had a practice session at Willem II. That went well, a lovely bunch of people and I got into the so-called talent school.”

Who else was in that?

“Jurgen Locadia, PSV and now Brighton, was part of that. He’s the only one that made it, with me, as a pro.”

Locadia moved from Willem II straight to PSV. You took the long and winding road…

“I always had something or other… Like I said, I was little. Considered too small. I was almost sent away but was offered one last chance. And guess what: that summer I had my growth spurt. And as a result, I got knee issues. We played the big tournaments with Willem II. It was a tremendous time. We never won anything, but we competed. Against Ajax, with Ricardo van Rhijn and Marco Bizot (now AZ) and against Feyenoord with Clasie. I still talk to these guys, it does give some sort of bond, as we all play pro football now.”

You never played for Willem II’s first team. Why did you go to FC Groningen?

“I was second year A Junior, I played there for 10 years and I was hoping to get a contract, but…nothing. And there were several sub top clubs from the Eredivisie interested. Only when Groningen made a move, Willem II quickly offered me a contract. Well, too little, too late. So I decided to go to Groningen. I started in the second team. Rode my bike to the stadium. I lived alone in Groningen and had a wonderful time.”

Groningen is a university city. Lots of young people. Did you notice?

“You bet, hahaha. I was 19 years old… My coach was Dick Lukkien, currently coach of FC Emmen. He’s not unlike Ronald Koeman. Really direct. I learned heaps from him and we still talk. I made my debut in that first year in the first team. And then I got into the spotlights and I loved that aspect as well.”

Did the Top 3 (Ajax, Feyenoord, PSV) ever check you out?

“It’s the summer of 2013 and I wanted to make a move. The logical step was the top 3 of course. I wanted to. I was open to all three clubs. I know Ajax was interested but also checked out Van der Hoorn of Utrecht (now Swansea). They ended up going with him. PSV signed Bruma and Feyenoord had De Vrij, Martins Indi, Van Beek and didn’t want to add me to the mix, also due to their financial woes. And suddenly Celtic came. With a check and a good level of urgency. And they played Champions League football. So I decided to do it. And we played AC Milan, Barcelona and Ajax in that season. I played against those clubs and I played well too.”

And you never played for the Dutch rep teams??!?!

“Well, in all honesty, I wasn’t that good. Seriously, I was not better than the ones who did play. I am a late blossomer.”

Do you ever get upset? Or angry?

“Well not really angry. Definitely not at home. I did get really pissed off recently, when we lost a practice match, 5 v 5. The losers needed to bake a cake. And in the game, I noticed we weren’t going to win. And I realised I had to bake a carrot cake and they would also film that. I almost gave someone a truly nasty kick. I can’t stand losing and my mates and the coaches know this now. They know to leave me alone after a lost match. Don’t make jokes or try to make it all sound as if it doesn’t matter. You’re not doing yourself any favours, hahahaha.”

Ronald Koeman is important in your career. He signed you at the Saints, made you Oranje skipper. But also very critical, like when Giroud scored that goal against you….

“He is allowed to be super critical. I think Koeman is a top coach and he knows how to reach me. I am forever grateful for giving me the opportunity in the EPL. I remember the phone call, when he told me he would sign me from Celtic, but it took time and I waited and waited…”

Was it merely a phone call?

“Yes, we never met. We played qualifiers for the CL. Celtic didn’t want to let me go before we qualified. Only afterwards, Southampton made an offer. And then Celtic said: nah. I got so angry. And late in September I could make my move. He is hands down one of the best coaches I ever worked with, as he is really tough on me and spends a lot of time on me. I have a similar bond now with Klopp at Liverpool. They both demand 100% all the time. Every practice. I love that.”

Do they work a lot on you because of your potential?

“I think so, and I get better with them criticising me, I do see it as a good sign. When we did a pass practice at Southampton, on average, most players would have 6 good passes and 4 stray ones. Koeman didn’t seem to care. But if I had 1 stray pass out of 10, he would come down on me like a thunder storm. I could handle that. He demanded 100% from me.”

What are your weaknesses?

“Hmm, well, I’m not lazy. I think I always work hard, but I can be complacent. Klopp sees it too and is on the alert and my team mates at Liverpool too. James Milner for instance… I told him, I want you to have a right go at me if I am not running back quick enough or seem to be taking things to easy. Just scream in my face, I sometimes need that.”

When did you realise you could become a really big player?

“I think when Koeman told me. He said, if you play without loss of concentration and work 100% hard always, you’ll be moving up from Southampton. And Claude Puel who came after Koeman made me skipper at the Saints.”

That Liverpool move was not a pretty scene though… Lots of problem with Southampton?

“It was hectic because I was quite injured. I never refused to play for Southampton, that was concocted by the media I think. I focused fully on Southampton when I was fit again and played my games and in December, the board allowed me to talk to Liverpool. That was a nice Xmas, we had an extra glass of wine, hahaha.”

The most expensive defender, you become. And you met Gini Wijnaldum at Liverpool. How is your bond?

“Gini is Gini. Always smiling, always happy. We talk a lot. I spoke to him before I came her already, of course. Gini is a good lad, very social and a much much better player than most think. In Holland, he is underrated while in England people recognise his value more and more. He is unbelievably good.”

And then you play the CL finals vs Real Madrid and your goalie has two howlers.

“We went to Oranje straight after so that helped to process it all. And then I went straight on a holiday with my family. We were so close, it did hurt, yes.”

How did Koeman manage to get Oranje to perform as they do?

“It’s his style of coaching, his communication and clarity. Koeman wants to work with a fixed squad, so people know what is expected from them. Sure, when new players suddenly emerge, he will pick them up, like with Dilrosun. The team spirit is amazing, everyone is prepared to walk through fire for their mates. We do a lot of things together and have bonded really well. We talk a lot too, we are becoming closer and closer on and off the pitch. We also have lively tactical talks with Koeman and everyone has a say. We need to hold on to this.”

The move from Noordwijk to Zeist is always mentioned as well…

“And that made a difference, yes. Less distractions. We do more as a team. We have better pitches to work on and the focus is on performing. We also play more games together, not just PlayStation but also table tennis and 30seconds. Everyone wants to win all the time and it’s quite a circus at times. We also have a group app and we can stay in touch like this.”

You ticked off a lot of dreams already, what is next?

“Well, winning trophies. I won three with Celtic. But I also want to win at Wembley one day. I want to win the Champions League and the title here in England. And with Oranje, I want to win a tournament. All big dreams, I know, but if you can’t have big goals, you should stay at home, hahaha.”

Source: Helden Magazine – Barbara Barend

 

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by Jan

Why Virgil and Gini will win the CL!

Finally, an English team will break the reign of the Spanish CL rulers. It is possible to break the combination and possession play that dominated European football for so long. In the 2005/06 season, the CL became a chess game on grass. In the four semi final matches, only 2 goals were scored. The average that season, was 2,3 goals per game which is the lowest since 1992/393.  The success of the Italian clubs and conservative coaches like Benitez and Mourinho led a new trend. The best way to win something in Europe, was the thought, is to build a strong defensive organisational unit and hope for a counter attack.

Twelve years later and offensive football is victorious. A trend that started with Barcelona. Between 2006 and 2015 they win the most important prize in club football four times! And with dazzling attacking play. And now, this style is being followed, obviously by Pep Guardiola himself, as he brings Bayern Munich and now Man City to the level of his Barca teams. When Barca wins the trophy in 2011, they are one of the few teams to pass 500+ times per match. In this season’s CL tournament, there are 10 clubs that manage this.

To stop the Barcelonas and Bayern Munichs of dominating, the “park the bus” tactics were used, and with success too! Mourinho with Inter Milan, Chelsea under Di Matteo. Atletico’s Diego Simeone turns it into an art form, by playing a solid 4-4-2  with very tight space between the players in a zonal defensive system.

But it’s a German coach who plants the seed in 2013 as a response to the Spanish combinationdomination. And that seed will result and has already resulted in the spectacle in the Champions League we saw this season…

It’s Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich. Both teams have a football approach that starts with possession of the opponent, but with a thrust of pressure forward. A way of thinking reminiscent of the famous AC Milan team of the late 80s, early 90s under Arrigo Sacchi. Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp: “My teams are modelled on the AC Milan team of Sacchi. He was my mentor. I actually never met him but my former assistant coach Wolfgang Frank, who did work with him.”


Exactly like Milan, Klopp’s teams are trained to re-possess the ball in areas and in moments where losing the ball will bring the opponent immediately into trouble. The opponent is unorganised and Klopp’s team will pounce. In 2013, Dortmund beats Malaga and Real Madrid, while Bayern humiliates Barca by winning 7-0 on aggregate!

It doesn’t result in a new German era of success, but it does bring about the new trend of zonal marking, aggressive forward pressure and immediate pressing when the ball is lost. This is how AS Monaco beats Man City in the CL season last year. And this is how PSG beat Barca 4-0 at home. Sadly, the Parisians lose their cool in the Camp Nou and resort back to their defensive, park-the-bus tactics and actually lose on aggregate…

The UEFA’s annual technical report is quite clear, in the 2016/17 season. More than 20% of all goals are scored from a fast transition in open play from defence to attack. And this is even without all the free kicks and penalty kicks that derive from this. The number of passes to create a goal is decreasing as well. As is the average time it takes to win the ball back and score. And almost half of the goals are the result of possession turnaround high on the pitch, in the final third.

That season, Liverpool isn’t in the CL otherwise the stats would have been even more prolific. In the EPL, Klopp is still faced with teams that are happy to use the long ball and by pass the whole build up. And in the EPL, Liverpool does lose too many points against those opponents. In the CL however, teams like to build up, to pass the ball, have possession and break down an opponent.  In the CL, it helps if you can play out from the back with incisive and risky passing, and it helps if you can re-possess the ball swiftly and set up a lethal attack at the same time. Liverpool can do both.

This Liverpool is not the best organised lot. Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Juventus, Man City and Tottenham come to mind as being much better. But Liverpool is the King of Chaos. With the Reds, it is all about the turn around. When the opponent is just off the pace for seconds. When half the team of the opponent is still in forward motion and the other half breaks down to move back. Whenever Liverpool have the ball, they are prepared for when they lose the ball. When Liverpool are without the ball, they are preparing for the counter attack that will come, when they re-claim the ball. And, when Liverpool does start their turn-around move, they’re sheer unstoppable.

Ready for the press!

Klopp summarized it once as such, when asked what the difference was between Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal and his Liverpool. “Wenger loves to have the ball and loves to play from foot to foot. They’re well structured and balanced. Like an orchestra. They play lovely harmonies. I prefer heavy metal. I like noise. I like chaos.”

The Liverpool Stats on their way to the CL finals are stunning. Out of the 33 goals they scored, 28 goals were set up with less than four passes. No other team has scored or shot on target as often from the turnaround as Liverpool have…

Klopp organises his teams in such a way that winning the ball back equates becoming a threat immediately. This is how it’s done. The Liverpool team will veer with the opponents movement. The pace goes down a bit, every player protecting his zone. The team on the ball will actually believe they get a moment to breath and build up nicely. But Liverpool players are taught to recognise when the opponent gets into trouble. For instance, a pass on a midfielder with his face towards his own goal. Or a square pass to a back who is with his back to the line and has less options. Or a pass lacking the pace. A stray pass. Anything. And when that happens, it’s like Liverpool turns from kittens into leopards. They suddenly increase the intensity and hunt for the ball. Klopp’s team is like a predator, allowing the pray to think they’re safe. Until they’re not anymore.

The moment Nangolain made the wrong pass…

With Mane and Salah up top, Liverpool has the speed. And they work well together with false #9 Firminho, the first station in the counter attack, he will find the pass towards the two speedy forwards. Firminho is also the man to join in and his bursts usually create space for the upcoming midfielders, like Can or Wijnaldum or Oxlade Chamberlain. The Liverpool midfielders are all built for this chaotic style of play. They can all come up with creative solutions under pressure. Klopp: “How I coach the counters? That is not hard. I start with signing players who are willing to work hard every match and who are happy to run constantly, even if they won’t get the ball.”

And Liverpool is away….

And the entertainment value of Liverpool matches is the result of all this, as Liverpool also makes mistakes in their execution. They score 5 against Roma, using their strengths and concede 2 against Roma in situations where the cohesion is gone. When the field becomes too stretched or when a defender misses the challenge, Liverpool can become really open and vulnerable. Klopp doesn’t seem to care. “As long as we score more on the other end…”

These are the 6 principles of Jurgen Klopp’s philosophy:

  1. Lure the Opponent in

Liverpool doesn’t need the ball. Liverpool wants to control space. They determine where the opponent can go and where they can’t. By pressing early and high, opponents can either play the long ball, and there is a fair chance The Reds will win that (Virgil van Dijk) or they play out of the back, which is a high risk game. Because if they lose the leather, the likes of Salah, Mane and Firminho will tear you apart. Liverpool will drop back a bit, giving the opponent the idea it’s safe to start building up and then – as explained above – when a certain risky situation appears, they will pounce. They will all move towards the side where the ball is and suddenly block off the next pass.

2.  Direct the ball towards one side

Liverpool doesn’t mind it when the opponent has the ball as long as they have it where Liverpool wants them to have it. And they do this by not being totally in balance. It’s the smart body language and smart runs that will slowly force the opponent into a certain area. Roberto Firmino is the king of this game. He’s got the intelligence and the energy to repeatedly do this in a match. Klopp will find the weakest link in the opponents team and seemingly leave that player unmarked. Once he is played in (usually a full back) Firminho will move towards the player in such a way that the next pass is predictable. And pray for the next Liverpool player. Another element that is key is the ability of the Liverpool players to “mark” two players. Basically, the midfielders and the defenders of Liverpool are capable of putting pressure on the man with the ball but also by blocking a pass to a team mate of the opponent.

Liverpool forcing the goalie to make the risky pass into one of the central backs

3.  Prepare the trap

When Liverpool is at the point where the opponent is forced to the side where Liverpool wants them, the trap will be set. Liverpool will block every pass, except the one that Liverpool likes to see used. Liverpool keeps one option open and the player under pressure will usually use that option. In some situations, four Liverpool players will be ready to immediately put pressure on the ball with intensity and pace. Once the ball is won, Liverpool can immediately attack.

4. Set the trap

Liverpool, as a result of the number of players used in the trap, will always have players available to release the ball to. There is usually always a man more situation created as a result. Obviously, Liverpool will be understaffed on other areas of the pitch and sometimes a really special player will be able to play the ball in one time in that area, but Klopp is happy to have that risk. Because when Liverpool do win the ball, they have a man more situation (at least one man more) and most of Liverpool’s goals are scored from this situation.

5.   Do get the ball!

Apparently, this is the past where Klopp needed most work. Because putting pressure on the ball or actually getting the ball are different things. Klopp wants his players to go for the kill. Not complacent pseudo challenges. But go for the ball 100%. The result in the 2016/17 season: Liverpool players re-possessed the ball most out of all EPL players, and that includes creative players like Philippe Coutinho.

6.  Attack!

The last ingredient of the Klopp recipe is to actually attack. Don’t repossess the ball and recycle it with a square pass or a back pass. No. Attack! Immediately. The opponent usually is badly organised in these situations and Klopp wants to use that situation. But it does mean his players have to work ever so hard and cover so much ground. With Mane and Salah he has speed and with the likes of Firminho, Wijnaldum, Milner and Can he has the work horses to support.

With this style of play, it is easy to see why the top teams don’t like to play against Liverpool. But it also shows why it ‘s hard for Liverpool to win the EPL title. Most of the teams in the bottom half of the league will not try and dominate, or play possession and walk into the Liverpool trap. Against these teams, the long ball will be used by the opponent and Liverpool will have to find a Plan B to break these clubs down.

Winning the Champions League seems easier for Liverpool than winning the EPL title…

Thanks to VI Pro for the insights…

 

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by Jan

Analysis: Why Oranje Fails….

Yay! The poisonous chalice is empty! Now all we need to do is live through that ratchet World Cup and we can start anew. VI Pro is doing us all a huge favour publishing very good and insightful stuff on Dutch football. I will borrow their insights for you in the coming weeks.

This article was published by VI Pro and explains exactly what I tried to say many times but haven’t been able to express as well as the man quoted in this article. The original article zoomed in on Gini Wijnaldum. But the context applies to the whole national team.

And the man to shed light eloquently on our woes, is not Louis van Gaal. It’s not Johan Cruyff, or Wim van Hanegem or Frank de Boer. It’s a guy most of you won’t have heard of: Pepijn Lijnders. In case some of you wonder how to pronounce his name: in English you would spell it like this: Pepine Lineders.

Who the hell is Pepijn Lijnders? Read about it here

The introduction anecdote is about Wijnaldum and Liverpool FC.

The Reds have been practicing a different system in the run up to the West Ham game. The 4-3-3 will be replaced by a tweaked 4-4-2 to stop the ongoing defensive issues. Wijnaldum got injured in the CL match, so Henderson and Can are supposed to play the holding roles in midfield. But Henderson gets injured on the day of the match. Milner, multifunctional, is picked as his replacement, but does he have the legs still, for this role?

Liverpool’s medical team comes with surprising news though. Wijnaldum is fit to play! Jorgen Klopp doesn’t hesitate. He picks Gini for the Henderson role. Wijnaldum did travel to London with the squad but didn’t take his football boots as he wasn’t supposed to play at al… And without having had a minute of training in the new system, Wijnaldum plays the West Ham game, the full 90 minutes, as if he never played in another system his whole life. He is very neat in possession, with Can, he shield and guards the backline and coached and talks to his team mates. Wijnaldum is seen as a key player in Klopp’s Liverpool.

And how different is all of this at Oranje? Wijnaldum seems lost. Like a University student trying to find his way at Primary School. But he can’t make sense of this once so familiar environment….

It’s time to listen to the man who works with him daily. Liverpool assistant coach Pepijn Lijnders.: “Gini is terrific in running and moving. But he needs to have clarity where to move to.”

So, we have four different NT managers and Gini played with seventeen (17!!) different team mates in midfield in different systems and in different roles since that summer in 2014.

With Daley Blind, Gini is the only constant factor in the ratatouille that is the Dutch NT. In this context alone, it’s not strange that Wijnaldum can’t flourish. If the farmer would plough his soil everyday, seeds won’t get the chance to grow.

These are the players Gini played with since the WC2014: Nigel de Jong, Wesley Sneijder, Daley Blind, Leroy Fer, Jordy Clasie, Davy Klaassen, Jonathan de Guzman, Davy Propper, Ibrahim Afellay, Riechedly Bazoer, Marco van Ginkel, Kevin Strootman, Tonny Vilhena, Jorrit Hendrix, Stijn Schaars, Bart Ramselaar, Marten de Roon.

Pepijn Lijnders mentions this lack of consistency as the first reason why there is now flow. “You can’t judge and compare players without the context. Everyone yaps about “lack of quality” but I disagree strongly. What lacks, is stability and leadership. Players need two things: clarity and confidence. And these two elements were lacking.”

He goes on: “The lack of consistency is or was dramatic. in the coaching staff and in the squad. Continuity and a clear match plan to play the opponent in the key moments in the game are highly important factors. Maybe the most important aspect. This is how you go from eleven good players to a very good team!”

And the worst part is: it doesn’t seem all this swirling and swaying hasn’t ended yet. Dick Advocaat hopefully moves on after these friendlies. And the new coach will have to find a way to create a winning team for the Euros 2020. Which means the shuffling about hasn’t ended yet. Lijnders: “Everytime you point one finger to one player, four fingers point to the collective. Problems are never the result of one player, but the result of a failing collective. A simple example: it makes a huge difference if a player needs to defend a space of 10, 20 or 30 meters on the pitch. The bigger that space, the bigger the chance he’ll make an individual mistake. But it all starts with the positioning of the whole team.”

Individually, Wijnaldum is not a great defender. Not at Liverpool, not at Oranje. He doesn’t have the positional smarts of Matic (Man United) to excel in interceptions. Nor does he have the duelling strength of Kante. Put Wijnaldum in a big space in a badly organised Oranje and he looks more and more like the 17 year old Number 10 of Feyenoord: hard working, dynamic, but also wild and without control. That is the Wijnaldum we see in Oranje: a lost footballer in a team without a plan.

But, Wijnaldum has all the tools and ammo that make his so perfect for top football. He has tremendous legs and is extremely disciplined. Ask Wijnaldum, like Van Gaal did in the WC2014, to track his direct opponent for 90 minutes and he will. As if his life depends on it. Wijnaldum hasn’t played for seven months due to injury at that stage, but Van Gaal picks him to make his 5-3-2 work. Since then, the only game in which he excelled was the friendly in June 2016 when his role is to press forward in the Number 10 role. When there is a structure and he has a specified task, Wijnaldum can impress. And this will definitely apply to Strootman, Klaassen, Clasie and many other players who tend to disappoint in the orange jersey.

Lijnders summarizes: “Gini is a wonderful runner. But you need to make it clear to him where and when to run. Everything starts and stops with the distances between the players and the right shape of the team. Clarity amongst the players. So they know what they have to do, and what they can rely upon from their mates. If we practice this time and time again, quality pops up. The individual development will move up. The joy and confidence returns. We never lose a single minute at training to work on this. Our strength, as Liverpool, is this aspect in combination with energy and pace. But you can say this about Napoli, Man City, Bayern, Chelsea…any modern football team. A top team without energy and pace is like driving a Ferrari without fuel in the tank.”

Wijnaldum was on the radar of many big clubs already when he was 14 years old. His family didn’t allow him a big move, where his mates succumbed for the financial carrot. He stayed at Feyenoord until the Rotterdam club needed to sell him to survive financially. Fer and Wijnaldum’s fees saved the club but Gini remained in the Eredivisie. And when he finally did move to Newcastle, Jorgen Klopp and Maurizio Pochettino immediately recognised his skillset for the top level. Both did all they could to persuade the midfielder to move to their club. Both coaches love aggressive pressing play and both needed a catalyst in midfield. Spurs decides to stop the bidding war with Liverpool and Klopp was the victor.

At Liverpool, Wijnaldum is given a speed course defending. Jorgen Klopp: “At Liverpool, no one is responsible for one opponent. Everyone is responsible for everyone.” In other words: all positions need to be taken, all the time. It doesn’t matter by whom. Wijnaldum: “Klopp is very clear about his ideas. And I picked it up quickly. It’s actually great fun to play in a team like this. And when the ball is on the other side of the pitch, I don’t even watch my direct opponent, because I know we pressure the ball so well, that we’ll have it back in no time.”

And all this happens at Liverpool in a playing area on the pitch which is never more than 25 meters. In the Klopp model, Wijnaldum isn’t so much the man who wins the ball back, but the man who ignites the fires. Lijnders: “Exactly. The team wins the ball, preferably as high up the pitch as possible. So Gini doesn’t play man to man, he is responsible for the covering of passing lines and he takes the initiative to push up and forward.”

Pepijn Lijnders and Jurgen Klopp

A good example, against West Ham. Fernandes wants to dribble forward with the ball and it’s Wijnaldum stepping up around the middle line to put pressure on the West Ham player. He has two options, go for the short pass or play a long ball. If he picks the short pass option, two or three Liverpool players will be ready to corner the West Ham player. He decides to play a long pass, hastily, which sails over everyone into the safe hands of Mignolet. The stats won’t show the work and contribution of Wijnaldum, but no one at Liverpool needs statistics to understand Wijnaldum’s value in the team.

But the minute he strolls into Hotel Huis ter Duin to join the Oranje squad, the value of the midfielder diminishes as Oranje lacks all these patterns. In the Premier League, he’s responsible for a zone and passing lines. In Oranje, he is responsible for a direct opponent. Lijnders thinks this is not necessarily a problem. “He is a top pro and an intelligent player. The only change for him, is to change his focus.”

Wijnaldum himself: “Klopp alway says: it’s not the best players that win the title. It’s not the best team that wins it, but the team with the best plan.”

And there is the problem. A plan, that is exactly what Oranje has been lacking since the World Cup 2014. Since Wijnaldum made the move to Liverpool, he only scored one goal for Oranje: against Liverpool. Pretty poor for a player whose strength is to penetrate the box at the right time. This strong suit of the midfielder is well hidden in Oranje.

Whenever Wijnaldum changes from red to orange, he shoots less, he is less often in the opponent’s box, he passess less and creates less opportunities. Lijnders: “That is such a waste. Gini is a quick passer. Always ready to press and ready to switch the play. But, when he has less options, like any player, he becomes predictable and loses his strength. He is such an amazing pass & move player, has eye for the forward pass and is very solid in possession. Jurgen Klopp has a lot of faith in him.”

Lijnders and Wijnaldum

Strootman, Memphis, Robben, they’re all the victim of the poor positioning game of the Dutch national team. The bad positioning results usually in square balls instead of depth. Robben is forced to dribble against multiple opponents. And the more the defenders play square, the easier it is for the opponent, even the weaker ones, to keep their shape.

Lijnders sees that Wijnaldum is at his best when he can trust his intuition in the turn-around situations at Liverpool. “We have a very tight organisation with Liverpool, with lots of movement around the ball. Add the talent of our players and we can give colour to the game in specific moments. This is where you need practice practice practice. To create the circumstances in which our talent can blossom. And that is exactly what Oranje needs. Speed is the result of movement. By having options. Through spaces being opened up. Timing. By picking the right spot to move into, there are more options for a player on the ball to pick the pass. Unpredictability is the result of movement. There is no easy way to do this. It takes practice practice practice. That is the only way.”

A very hopeful analysis and conclusion. When Oranje can start to build a new team with a solid plan, we will be able to see the Wijnaldum of Liverpool, the Memphis of Lyon, the Quincy of Spartak and the Dost of Sporting…

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