Tag: Kluivert

by Jan

Oranje Lessons for Louis van Gaal

This is LVG’s third stint. 8 years ago, we celebrated a tremendous win over World Cup holders Spain, with the 1-5 in Brazil, while earlier on – during his first stint – Louis was tarred and feathered.

How does Louis deal with lessons learned?

It was a rare situation, back in 2001. The players came out of the change rooms after the match and had to ask the journalists whether they knew what the plans of Van Gaal were, with his weird substitutions. Irish midfielder Jason McAteer had just scored for the hosts and Van Gaal took man of the match Marc Overmars off and put Gio van Bronckhorst on. Central striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was already on the pitch, but this time as a winger. No one could understand it, and the players the least! What was Louis thinking?

Overmars himself wondered… “Do you know why was subbed?” Patrick Kluivert actively asked several jounalists. “Do you know what Van Gaal was wanting? I have no clue!” Jaap Stam asked whether Van Gaal had had his press conference already. And Frank Stapleton, former striker for Man United, Ajax and the Irish National Team said: “We want to thank the Netherlands for the substitutions made by coach Van Gaal”.

In 1998 and 2000, Oranje was kicked out of the tournaments due to bad penalty series. The golden generation of Kluivert, Davids, Seedorf, Overmars and Stam was keen to get some revenge. The qualification series started in a positive way. The buoyancy was palpable with the former success coach of Ajax and Barca at the helm.

Under Rijkaard, Oranje beat Yugoslavia 6-1. According to Van Gaal, that match was going to be the norm for Oranje. But under Van Gaal, the Oranje stars never reached that level. While they did manage to get to the semi finals with a similar squad in 2004, under Dick Advocaat.

The dramatic first LVG stint was all the fault of the players, so said Van Gaal. The lads were not open to LVG’s serious, professional and intense approach. Which puzzled him, as he worked with most of them at Ajax and Barcelona before. The players used this exact stance as the reason why it didn’t work. The youngsters from 1995 had grown, developed. They won trophies and went from talents to leaders on the pitch. Players like Stam, Van Bronckhorst, Overmars, Davids had a different status. None of them were going to accept the police man’s approach by Van Gaal. No fines when the laces weren’t done properly. No reprimandes needed for when a player didn’t tuck his shirt in. The players were used to the friendly vibe of Hiddink and the laissez-fair mentality of Frank Rijkaard. These coaches could crack the whip alright, but only when they really needed to. Van Gaal approached the NT role as a club coach, with a key role for fysio Raymond Verheijen.

The players first shared their misgiving informally and off the record. Captain Frank de Boer went into dialogue with Van Gaal and the latter was flabbergasted. “They have a different idea about professional sports and management. That is disappointing. I want to rule out coincidences. I do not believe in a loose approach! When Frank tells me the players just want to be playing football volley or tennis and have a nice time, I am completely flabbergasted and dumbfounded. If that is the new norm… pff…. I expect my players to be hungry, to have ambition!”

“I expect to go back to being a club coach. I have more control and can work with my players daily.”

Louis does self-reflect and will always evaluate himself. This means, the man will develop and change over time. In 2000 and 2001, the key was attacking, dominant posession based football. But in 2012, he decided that that generation of players was not able to bring that type of football. Robben, Sneijder and Van Persie could, but they were getting older. The group of players in the mid 20s lacked the absolute world class of the generation before them. We went from Ronald de Boer, Davids, Seedorf, Cocu to De Guzman, Fer and Nigel de Jong.

When he starts in the second stint, in 2012, he starts with a group session. All players are invited to speak and deal with the issues they encountered under Van Marwijk at the Euros. Van Gaal listens and observes. He wants to see who are the rotten apples, and which players demonstrate leadership. Dirk Kuyt, Wes Sneijder, Nigel de Jong and Arjen Robben speak up. Substitutes should not be able to impact the vibe in the group. Players who can’t deal with not playing need to stay home. Sneijder: “I do not want some guy to ruin five weeks of my life again.”

“When Wesley Sneijder wins the ball in midfield, you need to cheer like this!”

After the meeting, the Brazil manifest is made up. All players sign it. Oranje wins every match in the qualification series, but Van Gaal gets a fright when playing France in a friendly, 3 months before the World Cup. Oranje loses 0-2 but worse: it cannot force their plans onto the opponent. Van Gaal instructs his analytical right hand man Danny Blind to analyse the way Juve and the Italian NT play, with 3 or 5 at the back. Van Gaal prefers to call it the 1-3-1-4-2, it sounds less defensive.

Van Gaal has a couple of big meetings planned. He needs to convince Van Persie and Robben of his plans. The former is quickly convinced, when he sees Feyenoord win in Eindhoven versus PSV as Koeman uses the 5-3-2 with success. The second big job is to get Sneijder fit. The life loving playmaker loves life a bit too much and is not longer as fit as he was in 2010. Life in Turkey is easier than life in Milan or Madrid. Van Gaal has a go at Sneijder publically and he takes the captains band from the midfielder. Sneijder is furious and starts a training program under Henk ten Cate on Ibiza. When Sneijder arrives at the prep trainings camp, his tests seem unreal. There must be a technical glitch. They want him to do the tests again with calibrated machinery. The same results. Van Gaal is gobsmacked, but in a good way!

Wesley Sneijder is considered not fit enough. When the journo asks Van Gaal what he will do when Sneijder is fit enough to tackle and win the ball, the narcissistic coach yells: “I will CHEER for him. CHEER!!!”

Sneijder: “He is a genius, but a crazy one. He annoyed me every couple of days with his antics, also during the tournament, but he did so to spice me up and it worked.”

“When will you win the ball for us?”

Van Gaal has exactly 22 days from start of prep to the first match v Spain. In those days, he’s sculpting his team into something new: the provocative press. Meaning, not too high on the pitch. But enough for the opponent to want to attack Oranje, and when that occurs, space will open up for the likes of Robben or Memphis to use. The distance between players can never be more than 15 yards. Whenever this doesn’t work out, LSV switches back to 4-3-3, he would do this a number of times during the tournament.

“Bloody ‘ell mate, win a ball for us!!”

Memphis Depay is a bit player in Oranje. He is seen as a potential game changer, like Noa Lang is now. But when the mercurial forward tricks Van Persie at a closed off practice session, the Man United star doesn’t stand for it and tackles the youngster hard from behind. When he’s writhing on the pitch, Van Persie also gives him an earful. Memphis is so angry and hurt, that he starts crying after the practice session and Patick Kluivert does what he can to calm the PSV player down. Later that night, Robin van Persie goes to Memphis’ room to apologise and hug it all out. A line in the sand.

As Van Gaal has been quite clear to his players: there is only one goal: achieving success! No man is bigger than the team!

“I am not asking again!! Win possession back!!”

The former Antwerp player didn’t just change his tactics, he also relaxed his overall management style. Van Gaal notices on the day before the Spain match that the players are tense, nervous. So on the morning of the Spain match, he proclaims that they’ll have a quiet day and he invited the wives and kids to come to the players hotel to spend half the day with the whole family.

All the players will later also explain how Van Gaal and Danny Blind have been able to give the squad a details run-down of all scenarios they can encounter in a given game. And practically everything they experience in the matches have been prepped and discussed before hand. The only secret Van Gaal and Blind have, is what they’ll do in case of penalty shoot outs. Keeper coach Frans Hoek has convinced Louis that in case of penalties, Cillesen needs to make way for Tim Krul. The Valencia goalie does not have great stats in this, while Krul has a reputation of being a penalty killer.

Tim Krul is in the know, though. And in the players’ bus, the then Newcastle goalie reserves two seats for himself. The players think he needs to stretch his legs. But he actually analyses the penalty kickers of the opponents, without the other players noticing.

Later in the tournament, Krul is the hero when he stops to pens versus Costa Rica.

Oranje has to shoot penalties in the semi finals versus Argentina as well. By then, the third sub has been used. In hindsight, Van Gaal regrets having subbed Van Persie for Huntelaar as Cillesen can’t stop a single pen and Ron Vlaar and Wesley Sneijder miss for Holland. In an exciting losers finals, Oranje beats Brazil (goals by Van Persie, Blind, Wijnaldum ) and takes home the bronze.

“Ok, so you score a goal. Fine. But I will only cheer for winning the ball back.”

Louis has demonstrated that he is able to be flexible. It does take a time span of 20 years to see this. He went from a strict drill sergeant in 2000 to the flexible and opportunistic coach in 2014 and the warm and friendly uncle in 2022.

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by Jan

Pascal Struijk, dreaming of Oranje

He is beginning to be a big name in England. While in The Netherlands, he’s still merely a footnote. He’s Marcelo Bielsa’s favourite and is hoping to become Van Gaal’s as well. If only that call came.

The VI Pro pubished this excellent article on Struijk. Enjoy.

Elland Road is a paradise for football lovers. The 124 year old stadium oozes football. The steep stands, the wooden chairs, the names outside on the wall of Norman Hunter, Jacki Charlton and Gary Speed. There is the Don Revie statue of course, who managed the team of street fighters who dominated Englsh football some 50 years ago, with two titles, and an FA Cup.

Captain Billy Bremner is still considered their best player ever but today it’s the serious doctor’s face of Bielsa that looks down on the visitors here, on several big billboards. The maniacal Argentine coach steered Leeds back to the highest level in England after 16 years in the wilderness.

The sales guy in the fans shop: “The jerseys of Phillips and Raphinha are the most popular, but Struijk sits in third place, easily. He was part of the team that got promoted so he will be a hero here for life. He is our Virgil van Dijk!”

The comparison is made often. The Leeds press chef: “Did you see him against Norwich? Blimey! We knew he could defend but his passing is outrageous too. The fans, the manager, the media, everyone is impressed with him. Surely, he is in the National Squad by now?”

More about that later. But yes, Struijk does resemble. Van Dijk. They even look the same a bit and his game play too. Tall, elegant, sovereign, confident. Good in aerial duels. Excellent passer. And great vision. He might still be a tad soft, but once that goes, he will be world class.

There are more portraits in the stadium. Gary McAllister of course. Gordon Strachan. But no Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, for some reason. “One of our best strikers. And we see him often here, he visits us at least 8 times per year.” Eight other Dutchies played for Leeds United, and Robert Molenaar was probably the most popular. The concrete defender from Volendam earned the nickname The Terminator here. And now they again have a Dutch defender who is close to their hearts.

Pascal Struijk waits with a cup of coffee in one of the skyboxes. “See how wonderful this looks. Who wouldn’t want to play here? Most clubs don’t like coming here. The fans are so fanatical, it’s amazing.” Slowly he tells his story. “As a kid, we would watch Match of the Day. I adored English football and when we went across with an ADO Den Haag youth team once, we visited some of the big stadiums. We went to Old Trafford and Anfield and wow… I knew it then and thought: “One day I will play here!”. He played his first match at Old Trafford last season but as a bench warmer in an empty stadium. This season, he started with 80,000 people in the stands. Nervous? “Not really, I was very nervous in my first match v Liverpool, I think I had to go to the toilet 5 times before the game but that doesn’t bother me anymore. I know what I can and I concentrate on that. It feels like normal now. But when I speak to friends or family who are watching at home, I do realise how special it all is.”

“There are always stories of youngsters going across to England and failing, but for me it was the right decision. I don’t think Ajax rated me, which is ok… But I had to take control of my destiny.” He moved from ADO to Ajax when he was 16 years old but he was never really himself. “I didn’t know what my best position was but my coaches didn’t know either, hahaha. They even used me as a striker and it was not good for my confidence.  “I was a bit shy, I guess. I was at home at ADO which is a warm club. Ajax is colder, more like a company. There were big name players, everyone was cocky and egotistical. I was too impressed with it all. You had to be cocky and confident, to survive. I didn’t have that. Matthijs de Ligt, he was such a strong personality, so confident. Justin Kluivert, the same. They all played for rep teams, I didn’t. I was too modest back then. But not anymore, hahaha.”

Lost at Ajax

“There are always players at Ajax who for some reason get the attention. You can feel that coaches are personally invested to get that player to the top. That connection with a coach, I missed that. I was one of these players that was overlooked, maybe like Virgil or Jaap Stam you know? Or Marten de Roon. I wasn’t great, so that didn’t help either. My hidden potential stayed hidden. I missed that sense of urgency to show myself. That came later I guess. I needed some help.”

His manager of Forza Sports Group brought him to a performance coach. “He asked me what my identity was. Was I a leader? Or a beast? And we worked towards building that identity. We did motivational stuff and mental stuff. I grew, I got more confident. It’s in little things. Like little rituals before a game. I also tell myself I am The Best. That helps too, hahahaha.”

Six months after Struijk signed for Leeds, Bielsa was announced. “My dad immediately bought his book El Loco. I had a bit of an idea what to expect. He is crazy indeed, but football crazy. Good crazy. He is obsessed with football and completely focused on making you the best version of yourself. As an example? We get personalised diets, which are balanced out to the calory.”

And of course hours or pre match tactical talks with all the information available about the opponent. “He can tell you which player will start to get fatigue at what moment of the game and he then starts to make silly fouls. Or particular patterns of play. Choices made by the goalie when kicking a ball out, etc etc.” Infamous are his training sessions of eleven v eleven, but without goals and now cornerkicks and no throw ins. When the ball is out, the coaches kick another ball in and the player need to keep on going. Standing still means a red card. Constant movement. Every 5 minutes there is a break. After 5 sessions like this, players are vomiting in the bushes. Bielsa studies the patterns and movements and checks all the data like a professor. When you survive this murder ball, you are ready to play the game. All players will tell you that a match is the easiest bit of being a Leeds player.

Junior at ADO Den Haag

Struijk can only confirm: “The practices are super intense. Bielsa sees everything. Every detail. He made me look differently at football. For instance: don’t follow the ball, follow the man. And he is most sharp when we turn around possession. We train very specifically on that aspect. I really became a way better defender under his leadership. Look at how easy some players allow their opponent to drift away. Or how some players jog back in position. That won’t happen with us.”

“We play different here. We play man v man, all the time. High pressure, suffocating the opponent and always tough in the duels. We won’t change that, no matter where we are in the table. We will go up I’m sure. It is all about the execution. In the start of the season, we were sloppy and we are missing some key lads, but we have the belief.”

Bielsa on Struijk: “He works really hard, mentally and physically. And he is very capable of playing in different roles. He’s important for us as he is also a very intelligent footballer.”

Struijk has been used as central defender, defensive mid and left back. “Bielsa does this on purpose to make me better, more complete. Now, as left back, I need to make a lot of runs. And I usually up against quick and agile players. I played in midfield too where it’s crowded and you need to act really quickly. I am growing in every aspect of the game. I never felt that my opponent had the better of me. The only thing, I saw the data of my aerial duels and even though I am a good header of the ball, the stats say I lose too many duels. So that is something to work on.”

Pascal lives with his fiancee in a small village outside of Leeds where he enjoys his off time walking his dogs in the park. The quiet does him good but some big city clubs are after him now, apparently. Napoli, AS Roma, Leicester City and Newcastle United are chasing his signature, according to rumour. The Leeds press manager leans in when the part Dutch part Indonesian defender responds: “I am happy here. But you never know. I do want to better myself constantly, of course.”

The Romantic Struijk

His fave spot in the team? Left Centre Back. His role model? “Virgil of course. His confidence, his charisma, some opponents simply get intimidated by that already. I watch his games and study him. He was a candidate for the Ballon D’Or as a defender! How good is that!? I want to grow to that level. It’s a high aim to go for but I want that. I want to become one of the world’s best. It’s the ambition at least.”

In September, Struijk was facing Van Dijk, which would be a black day in Pascal’s short career. He tacked opponent Elliott and the youngster of Liverpool ended up in hospital with a complicated ankle fracture. Struijk got red carded and a two-match ban. The whole football world was confused. Even Elliott himself said the red card was ridiculous. “He told me too, I went over to him and he immediately waved my apologies away. It was a clean block but his ankle got stuck under my trailing leg. It was an accident. Virgil asked me what was going on and I told him, that I didn’t know, I hadn’t even noticed at the time. Virgil sent me a supportive message after the game, which did me the world of good.” The young defender hopes to spend more time talking to Virgil, about football, about defending, about anything… And preferably, in Zeist! The home of Oranje.

Pascal was born in Belgium. Both his parents are from The Hague, but Struijk senior had a software company in Belgium and when he was 4 years old they moved back to The Hague. Struijk played 3 matches for Oranje U17 and hadn’t heard from Zeist since. Until Erwin van de Looi, Jong Oranje coach, called him for the Euros under 21. Robero Martinez, Belgium NT manager, called him as well. “I actually considered Belgium. He did have a good story for me and I decided to get my Belgium passport. Because of Corona i wasn’t able to travel to Belgium so that is now all on hold.”

Red carded vs Liverpool

“I don’t want to rule out the Belgium NT. I mean, their defence is getting older but the team itself is a top notch team. It’s not a disgrace to play for the Red Devils, by no means. But my heart goes out to Oranje of course. But I am not sure if Oranje has that with me. I never heard since that Van de Looi call. I would enjoy it if the KNVB would simply let me know they’re following me. That in itself would be grand. People tell me Van Gaal has a similar way of working as Bielsa so I hope to feel right at home with Oranje.”

Struijk’s grand parents are from Indonesia and they have also invited the central defender. “But no, Indonesia is not an option. You know what, if by next year no one shown interest, I could even be selected for the England team! I would be here for 5 years and considered a footballing Englishman, hahaha. That is very unlikely of course, but who knows. My ideal scenario: the Dutch NT of course. And at the coming World Cup, if possible.”

At the end of the interview, the press manager asks: “So what did you say earlier about El Loco?” Struijk: “I talked about the book. and that the gaffer is a bit crazy. But in a good way!”

The press manager: “Then it’s fine, hahaha.”

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by Jan

Young Oranje’s puzzle

Coming Monday, Young Oranje plays their quarter finals vs France in the Euros under 21. Coach van de Looi will have to make due without his top performers Cody Gakpo, Noa Lang and Teun Koopmeiners.

If Van de Looi could pick any player that fit the prerequisite, he would be able to field a team wih Gakpo, Lang, Gravenberch, Koopmeiners, Timber, Wijndal, Geertruida, Mo Ihattaren, Zeefuik, Ludo Reis, Donyell Malen and Mathijs de Ligt. Van de Looi would be licking his lips. But this is the fate of a coach at the Young Oranje level. You’re not the priority.

Team manager De Boer and injuries are spanner in the works and the former Groningen coach will have to make do with what he has got. He will stick to his 4-2-2-2 system, with which he played against teams that appear as strong as us, or even stronger. This week he will be finalising his jigsaw for the France game, coming up.

In the group phase, Ajax goalie Scherpen was the number 1 between the sticks, although Paes and Bijlow were the choice goalies during the qualifications. Bijlow suffered some injuries but he will most likely take the #1 spot as he has been without mistakes at Feyenoord, while Paes is still the second goalie at Utrecht. Scherpen was one of the men of the match in the group stages but his outing in Ajax 1, in the EL, didn’t go as planned. Scherpen needs more playing time and with a move to Brighton, this might well be on the cards. Or not.

In defence, I don’t think Van de Looi will change much. Never change a winning team, although the coach has some good options. Jordan Teze at PSV had a top season and Doekhi was one of the key performers at Vitesse. Van de Looi likes to play with the two towering centre backs Schuurs and Botman. No one will complain about Botman, as he just won the title in France with Lille. But Schuurs seems to have dropped in the Ajax hierarchy recently. Still, they used to play together at Young Ajax and both have been goal scorers for Young Oranje as well, so I can understand Van de Looi’s choices.

Left wing was usually Mitchel Bakker’s spot but he’s been quite vulnerable lately and hasn’t impressed with PSG either. Tyrell Malacia is in great form all season and deserves a look in. On the right side, Zeefuik is usually the first choice, but he’s injured. Teze might be the man for the job, as he will most likely replace Dumfries at PSV, should the skipper get his transfer this summer. I wouldn’t be surprised if the coach picks Devyne Rensch for the role. The 18 year old Ajax defender has been raising eyebrows in the past months, with his runs, his defending and his goals!

Van de Looi has been sticking to his firm squad, which also resulted in Jay Gorter (Go Ahead) and Pascal Struijk (Leeds United) not getting a spot, but he might now change his ways and allow for players in form to come into the team.

“We’re at the end of a tough season, and some lads have been playing a lot of games for the first time in their career. We need to see how everyone is, in terms of fitness and energy. Intensity will be key against an opponent like France.”

In the 4-2-2-2 the crucial roles are in that holding position. The engine room. In an ideal world, Erwin would play Gravenberch and Koopmeiners there. Now, the coach needs to pick his B options, although it’s not a fair label to push onto Abdou Harroui. The Sparta midfielder had his break out season and is on his way to a big transfer. He’s a light footed tackler, with lots of feeling in both feet. With Harroui, you get football and you get security.

Other options are Ekkelenkamp (Ajax), Matusiwa (ex Ajax, now Groningen) or Kadioglu. Dani de Wit can play there too but the coach expects to need him up front. Kadioglu is highly praised by Van de Looi and Ekkelenkamp is also a player who is able to squeeze good performances from the 4 forwards, thanks to his passing range.

Up front, there is two blocks of two. Two so-called half-10s and two strikers. Calvin Stengs is a cert for one of the half 10 roles. Noa Lang would probably be a shoe in for the other part. Up front, Justin Kluivert seems to be the firm choice with either Boadu or Dani de Wit next to him.

The former Groningen defender copped criticism for using De Wit as number 9. “He might not be a typical striker, but Dani has these penetrating runs, and you don’t see these enough. We missed that in our games vs Romania and Germany. Due to Noa Lang’s injury, the solution offers itself: Stengs and De Wit as half 10s and Boadu and Kluivert leading the line. Kadioglu and Dilrosun could also play in the half 10 role and if need be, Van de Looi also has Kaj Sierhuis at his disposal. This is a physically strong typical #9, which can work against a physical side that is France. The draw back is that the former Ajax striker hasn’t played much for Reims and when he did, he hardly scored.

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by Jan

Koeman Barca dream come true!

We didn’t know this would happen. But we knew Koeman really wanted this to happen. For years, Koeman shared his big dream to one day coach his favorite Barcelona. In the footsteps and on the shoulders of his mentor, Johan Cruyff.

And finally it happened. He was one of the few Barca fans with a huge smile on his face, when football machine Bayern took the Catalonians apart in the CL quarter finals…

Koeman ideally wanted to finish this years Euros with Oranje, before he’d jump to Barcelona but due to Covid, that tournament has been postponed and could in theory even be completely cancelled (nothing is sacred anymore).

So when Setien couldn’t find the answer to the problem(s), it became clear a new strong man was needed.

In the words of Barca watcher Edwin Swinkels: “Barca needs a strong coach, who will have the balls to complete renovate the squad and has the socios’ respect and support.” Xavi has been on the wishlist for quite a while, and the favorite in the eyes of some of the candidates to win the presidency at the club but for the inexperienced Xavi, it would be ideal if someone like Koeman would clean house first, and leave a new and flash Barca team to Xavi to enjoy.

Barcelona initially wanted Koeman for 1 year. But in the flash negotiations between him and the club (and manager Rob Janssen), the camp Koeman made it clear that he’ll need a bit more.

Koeman’s job will be a tough one. For starters, La Liga will start within the next 4 weeks already. And secondly, Barca declared only four (4!) players to be essential for the next Dream Team: Ter Steeghe, Messi (of course), Frenkie and French defender Lenglet. Yes, you read it correctly: Alba, Busquets, Griezmann, Suarez, Pique, Vidal, Dembele…anyone interested in them? Barca will wrap ‘m in gift paper.

And all this in a time when Barca doesn’t seem to have a lot of money to invest in new blood. A tough assignment. Typically an assignment only someone with a big huge hard-on for the club would accept. Koeman just did.

Lets look at that history between the two football phenomena…

It’s 1988. Koeman won the Euros with the NT and the European Cup with PSV. Real Madrid calls. Koeman answers the phone and checks in with mentor and ex-coach Johan Cruyff (at Barca), what he thinks. Cruyff: “Don’t sign. I want you here.”  Koeman signs in January 1989, for 6 million euros. A club record for PSV. He flies to Barca with his wife and goes through the motions with press, fans, and more press. On his flight back, he mutters: “Ooh, I can’t wait till I can hit a rocket into the top corner in Camp Nou!”. He did not lack confidence.

But his first months are dramatic. Barca can’t find the flow. They lose against Anderlecht in the first round of the European Cup and Koeman is used as midfielder, right and centre and fairly quickly named as the worst signing of the season…. When he also ends up losing against Mallorca on a pitch not even fit for cows, he doubts his move: “Is this what it is? Playing for Barcelona?”.

Koeman doesn’t believe his eyes. The socios adore players who run and work like crazy. Koeman is the type that doesn’t run, but prefers to walk, while letting the ball do the work. The forwards don’t press. The midfield is not strong enough. The defenders are constantly up against a majority of opponents. “I played nine years in the Eredivisie, I won everything you could win and then this??”

Koeman improves that season but would get seriously injured in his second season. Barca wins the title, though, the first since 1985. In his third year, Barca wins the title again and this time Koeman is impressive. He scored 26 goals from distance in six seasons and he would earn the nickname “the canon”.

Koeman and Cruyff had a difficult time together at Ajax. The midfielder went nuts over Cruyff’s continuous hammering on details and when Koeman could jump to PSV, Cruyff let him go. Only to buy him back for Barca, paying 13 times more. In Barcelona, they’d become neighbours and friends.

Koeman always played, until the 1993/94 season. Barca signs Romario. And extra foreigner, as JC had Koeman, Laudrup and Stoichkov. The media started to bet on “which player will be left out”. The bookies placed Koeman as the least likely. The Dutch man was so important now, Cruyff would never bench him!

But JC did. Koeman: “I was so angry! We had coffee earlier on the day as mates. I yelled at him: WHY DIDNT YOU INFORM ME?? And he just shrugged his shoulders.” Later, the press asked him about it and he said: “I decided to put my best man on the bench, as he is the strongest, mentally. He will get over it and it won’t affect him.”

After the press conference, he called Koeman and said “lets get the wives and go out for a bite” as if nothing had happened.

It’s May 1992 and Barca was finally able to get out of the shadow of Real Madrid. At Wembley, Barcelona Superstar Koeman scores the winner in the CL finals and will end up a club legend as a result. Koeman plays a top match and emphasizes his worth for the team. Every attack starts with him. The players always try to find him. He is the natural leader of this Dream Team.

Koeman reflects back onto his goal: “There was only one angle to score. One trajectory and I had to shoot the ball straight between a couple of players. When I take that free kick 100 times, 95 times I will hit a body part. This time, it went clean through.” Immortality for Koeman, as this goal will be shown in the Barcelona museum for decades to come…

In 1995, Cruyff wants to extend Ronald’s deal but it seems Koeman doubts. The Dream Team is not longer that dreamy. Stoichkov has placed bombs in the squad by saying that “this team isn’t good enough for me to want to play with” and “Koeman is in the team because he is friends with the coach”….The stress of playing in Spain becomes too much. Flying to away games, constant police protection, women hoping for a glimpse or more…. Whenever Ronald visits his family in Holland, he feels he is in paradise.

Koeman returns to Holland and signs for Feyenoord where he’ll play for 2 seasons. After that, he returns to Barca, as right hand man for Louis van Gaal while he also assists Guus Hiddink at the 1998 World Cup. He also coaches Barcelona B until Vitesse lures him to the main chair, in Arnhem. Even back then, he stated his ambition: one day I will coach Barcelona, I hope. He will coach Ajax and when in Amsterdam, Barca comes by to lure him to the job. But Ajax refuses to let him go.

They come again for him. This time it’s January 2020 and Koeman thinks he will play the Euros with the NT that summer… He couldn’t predict Covid-19, of course. He told Marca “Of course, I would have signed immediately if I was without a job. Everyone loves Barca. I don’t care what the circumstances are. When Barca calls, you listen. I love the city and I had my best years there.” Typical for Koeman: he seems to be able to make all his dreams come true.

The big question now is: who will follow him up as NT coach?

We will look at that in depth, in the coming days.

Dutch candidates: Louis van Gaal, Peter Bosz, Henk ten Cate, Phillip Cocu, Frank de Boer….

International candidates: Ralf Rangnick, Jurgen Klinksmann, Mauricio Pochettino, Leonardo Jardim, Hein Vanhaezenbrouck

Your thoughts?

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by Jan

Listen to the Man: soccernostalgia

Hi all, I realised I am becoming a bit of fossil. The whole world is podcasting, infuencing, selling shit via instagram etc etc. And I am just sticking to the typed word. Putting a video in my posts is a real hi-tech feat for me.

But, you can now listen to the man, as the Soccernostalgia Podcast invited me to talk them through the year 1983, for The Netherlands National Team.

An interesting year indeed. Ajax won the double with Cruyff. Feyenoord with Van Hanegem (57 years old or something) just finished second. The season after this one, Cruyff signed with Feyenoord and won the double there :-). And Oranje was prepping for the amazing 1984 Euros in France. We will do another one of these for that season too, I hope. As this was the period in which the 1988 Champions were moulded…So host Shahan Petrossian and co-host Paul Whittle will also blow your minds, as these two afficionados have incredible knowledge of international football… In general. I mean, minds blown.

Just click here if you want to have listen of what we discussed…

Your fearless writer in the podcast…

I will work on a nice piece on Jerdie Schouten of Bologna, who was under the radar of most, for a spell. But Christian Eriksen and Lukaku will tell you that they know who he is now.

But more importantly, I will post a cool article on another 1974 hero who died recently: Wim Suurbier.

He wasn’t the best player in the team. He didn’t get the accolades that Rep, Cruyff, Nees or De Kromme would get. But he is by far the guy who led the most interesting life… And I hope to get that article out to you soon.

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by Jan

Justin Kluivert: I want to shine!

Justin Kluivert spent time in The Netherlands during the Lockdown. This interview was done during the non-football period in Italy.

How are you?

Justin: “Until the Corona outbreak I was doing fine, particularly with my football. And you know me, when the football is good, my life outside of football is good too.”

Football as the benchmark?

“For me, yes. When you are happy in your football career it’s hard not to be happy outside of it, so yes. I played a lot before the lockdown and scored my goals. That seems to be key for most people, especially when you are playing abroad. People read the news headlines and you will come across in a positive way, when you score. So, that is good.”

Do you notice it in the streets too?

“Of course. When you scored the last game, people come up to you and congratulate you. And when you don’t score, they won’t. That is how it works. And I like reading stuff like “Kluivert saves AS Roma” or something. That sortathing works for you.”

You’re a young mama’s boy from Amsterdam. And there you went: as a 19 year old, to Rome!

“The first six months were all about adjusting. I only lived in Holland, with my mum. So big steps for me: leaving the club where I played all my life and leaving my mum behind.”

Were you lonely, in Rome, that first period?

“I don’t get lonely that easily, I am good at being alone. I am also a bit like: you signed for Roma, so no whining! I had a girl friend in Amsterdam but now I’m single again so literally alone. My mum visits often and I still have a little brother at school, so it’s a quiet life but it’s good. My first season in Rome, I didn’t want too many distractions.  I do get a lot of visitors so that is nice. My grandma flies down to Rome whenever she can. And my mum also helped by taking care of my home, she did the whole internal design thing, right how I like it. I have home here with a pool and many bedrooms for guests.”

Did you learn how to cook?

“Yes, I went to cooking school, hahaha. I cook for myself, no drama.”

Justin with mum Angela

So do you enjoy the life in Italy?

“Yes, the Italian vibe is top. Food is great, the weather is top, and I also use the Italian gestures now hahaha. One cappuccino for breakfast and then espresso shots. And on we go!”

Did you manage to be the tourist? Go to the Colosseum and all this?

“Football here is top class but the city of Rome is top as well. You can do so many things, we can go sailing or have lunch at the beach. I also visited the historic spots, but it’s like the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam… It’s for the tourist. You don’t go to the Rijks every month, when you live in Amsterdam. And we will get recognised always, that is a drawback. Walking through the city is no problem, you don’t need to wear a hoodie or something. They do look at you and sometimes ask for a selfie. I always say yes. It takes 30 seconds. So what, right?”

Who are the team mates you hang out with here?

“I spent a lot of time with Rick Karsdorp and his family, before he left for Feyenoord. He tought me heaps of things here, and I have to be grateful for him for this. Kevin Strootman was top too but he left very early to Marseille. I am the only Dutchie now and the youngest too. Most of my team mates have kids and families etc. At Ajax, all the players were young and we were all mates. I knew most from the youth teams. Here it is different, but on the pitch I get along with all of them.”

With which Ajax players do you still talk?

“I talk to Hakim Ziyech every now and then. His move to Chelsea was to be expected, man what a season he had! I look forward to seeing him in the EPL. I app with Frenkie at Barcelona a lot, but everyone is busy. We’re all on our own trajectory.”

Mino Raiola is your agent. Does he help you by connecting you to strikers like Zlatan?

“Well, I have my dad to talk to right? But I was in Monaco one time with Mino and Balotelli and Zlatan were there too. We had lunch together, which was fun. I also speak to Mkhitaryan a lot. He came from Arsenal, and he is so smart. He always gives me little hints and tips. He wants me to shoot quicker, get the shot away. Don’t make that extra move or trick. And I talk with my cousin Marillo and with my brother. Marillo is my best mate.”

Like Abdelhak Nouri was a good mate too….

“Yes, a really special mate. We played together at Ajax but we’re still friends. I think about him a lot. And because of what happened, I learned to enjoy every single day. Don’t hang on to anger, that sorta thing. Life can be over, just like that. Now I live here in Rome, I don’t get to see Appie that often. I’ll be visiting him soon I hope, but I find it extremely difficult. So horrible…”

How important is your mum to you?

“Pfff how do you say that. I am always very happy to be with her. She means the world to me. I lived with her my whole life and whenever I have a decision to make, I call her. And she support me in everything. She wasn’t very stern or anything but always clear. And when she said her piece, I was like… Ok… that is how it will be. But she always was loving and warm. She likes to hug and still does.”

So after a good game, you think about her?

“Yes, of course. I also play for her, but also for my dad. I love it when he’s proud. And for my brothers too. I want to shine on the pitch. And they give me my motivations. My parents got divorced when I was still little and I don’t know different than being raised by my mum. But I missed nothing, don’t get me wrong. In the weekends I saw my dad. That is how it was. My mum is a strong woman, she made sure we were happy.”

Are you tearing up?

“No. Yes, well… a bit. I mean, I am not a cryer person, but I always get emotional talking about my mum. She is the most beautiful woman in the world for me. But everyone will say that about their mum, I hope.”

You are known to be a very positive and open lad, but also very polite?

“That is how she raised me. Just act normal, she would say. Be polite. She raised three boys by herself and that can’t be easy but she did ever so well. I think my bond with my brothers is strong because of her parenting. I have two younger brother, Dean is my mum’s and lives in Amsterdam and always wants to know everything about football and Shane is my dads and he lives in Barcelona with dad, who works for Barcelona. I call them a lot and we always go on holidays together.”

And your dad? What does he mean to you?

“My dad was my role model! I always hear i look like him and he is also chill like me. That is cool. He’s not just my dad, but also a football legend. I now experience a tiny bit of what he went through. And I can always ask him for advice. We talk daily on Facetime or Whatsapp. He can’t visit often, as he’s very busy at Barca but that is ok. I am used to not seeing him often but I love him dearly and we will spend more time in the future.”

Daley Blind once said: I think my surname means I will be judged even more than I actually should…” Do you recognise this? 

“Of course, Daley is right. With a famous dad who also played for Ajax, people do try and see similarities or want to compare and yes, they judge you. You got to learn to deal with this. I got that as well: “You only play at Ajax because your dad played here…”. I used to say: come and see me play this weekend! The surname motivated me to play even better. “Will you be that good?” people would ask me and I always said: I will have to answer that on the pitch. Shane in Barcelona is going through the same as me. He looks like me, also as a player. Not too big, plays on my spot and has the same way of playing. We speak daily. I try to coach him a bit and we reflect on the stuff we go through. It’s not easy to be compared to your dad all the time. But it’s not just about football of course…”

Last season, when Ajax was so impressive, did you ever thing: “I wish I was there”?

“Of course I would have want to experience that! Take Matthijs de Ligt! We’re the same age, we know each other since we were 12. I have a smile on my face when I see him play at that high level. It was strange to see them do all that, without me. I watched all there games, and when you saw them play, in the tough games, I’d think: Wow, this is not normal! But this is how things go. You take decisions and sometimes you look back and think…hmmm…. but I’m proud of them and of myself for taking the step I took.”

Patrick, Justin, Shane and Matthijs in Barcelona. 

So why did you go? Why leave Ajax so early in your career?

“I just wanted the adventure. I did ponder it for a long time. But AS Roma was very concrete, the money was there, they explained to me why they wanted me and I thought: wow… The Roma deal vs the Ajax deal… It just was a very good step for me. I am a satisfied guy. The question was: are you ready, but how do you ever know? You have to try. People said: you have to perform every week now! And I’m like: do you think that is different in Ajax?”

Did you get better, as a player and human being?

“That is it! I have. The power I have now, I didn’t have at Ajax. And living in Rome, well…. “

Justin didn’t get selected for the National Team, in the past periods of play, but just when Koeman picked Kluivert for the pre-squad in the run up to the Euros, the corona virus reared its ugly head.

“It’s totally shite that the Euros are postponed. I was focusing on that for a full year. That was my big goal. But I get it, this is bigger than football. Now it will be next season and I will work my ass off to get there.”

Do you talk to Koeman?

“Every now and then. He came specially to Italy to see me last season. And guess what: I was on the bench all game. And I thought: there goes my chance. But he sent me an app with some little comments and the final word: “you are on my radar”. That gave me energy. The coach will not just look at my goals, but goals are important. I played two matches under Koeman now. He is a very relaxed and good coach. His tactical talks are never longer than 12 minutes. He said himself, he never liked these long speeches. So suddenly he’d look at his watch and yell: “Ok, we’re ready!!!” We all had to laugh. He is very clear in what he wants, and you feel like “ok, this is what we will do”. He is a real leader.”

Do you talk to your dad a lot about your game?

“Oh sure. He watches all my games and sends me stats from all my matches. He has an app with he uses and can show me the # of ball contacts I had, how many passes reached my team mates, etc. That is very insightful. I am personally not that analytical, I just play my game. I also don’t like tactics, I really need the freedom to play and be free in my head.”

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by Jan

Donny van de Beek and crying

It’s probably a matter of time now, before Donny van de Beek (22) moves to a European top club. Real Madrid and Donny are in agreement already, but Real isn’t moving as yet. Man United is also on the radar for the midfielder.

Here are some statements for Donny to respond to, about his brother, about darts and being Dennis Bergkamp’s son-in-law.

After a bad game, I flee for Sjaak Swart! (Sjaak is Mr Ajax, the famous right winger from the 1970s is still always at the club, currently as player’ manager).

Donny, laughing: “Yes sometimes! He can get really emotional after matches.”

And is he always super critical to you?

“I think so. But we do think the same about things. He can be critical of the ref too. I have a super bond with Sjaak, he plays a big role in my career.”

How did that happen?

“Sjaak always watched our youth matches and he always knew exactly who was who. We got into contact this way, and as I live a bit away from Amsterdam he offered me a room in his home, in case I wanted to stay in Amsterdam. And I would do this and we would talk hours about football and his wife Andrea would make fresh orange juice and what not. I still see Sjaak a lot. I go out to dinner with him or I drop in to see him and his wife. That will never change.”

Sjaak Swart is 81 year old. Recently, Barry Hulshoff died, the football father of De Ligt. Other generation peers died, like Piet Keizer, Gerrie Muhren and Johan Cruyff too. Do you fear the future?

“Sjaak is definitely a bit afraid. Yes and me too. I spoke to Matthijs de Ligt after Barry’s passing and it was tough for him. His bond with Barry was similar to mine with Sjaak. Everyone gets older and everyone dies, but it is part of my thinking, you know. Back of the mind kinda thing? But he is top fit and still plays football. I really want him to be part of my life for as long as possible.”

It was a close call, or I would have gone to The Hague (seat of government) to protest with the farmers against the CO2-policy. 

“No I wouldn’t have, but a lot of people from my village went.”

Your mother said that when asked about what little Donny wanted to become, you would say “chicken farmer or pro football player”. So you may have been plucking a chook right now?

“Hahaha, well my dad owns a chicken farm. I was always there to help after football training. I was cleaning or packing stuff, I wasn’t lazy. Loved helping. And yes, if I wasn’t a footballer now, I would probably be working in the family business. When I was small I always said I’d end up playing for Ajax, and I was always ridiculed for it, hahaha.”

Your dad was a decent player and played top level in the amateurs.

“He was a top striker at amateur level, yes, but a totally different player than me. He was a lazy cat. He had a nose for the goal. And he always taunts me with it. Whenever I miss a chance, he’ll tell me that he would have scored that. But he’s super proud of me. He’s always there with my grandparents, home and away games. Always. Only my kid brother Rody misses games, when he has had a heavy Saturday night, hahaha.”

Do you still wrap chicken breasts, at times?

“Oh yes, my dad asks me regularly. Sometimes I need to pick up stuff from restaurants on the way home from Amsterdam. Or I need to deliver a crate of chicken somewhere. Why not? It’s fun to see people respond like …” Huh? Oh… Van de Beek, ah you are that Van de Beek!?”…

I sometimes loathe playing football

“Football isn’t always fun. We sometimes play a dreadful game… for instance, I don’t think I ever want to play Getafe again, hahaha. A very annoying opponent. But hey, they progressed and we didn’t.”

How was this season compared to last season?

“We were doing ok. We were on the right track, but after the winter break we lost a number of key players. It didn’t go our way, so much.”

First it was David Neres, then Quincy Promes, Hakim Ziyech and Joël Veltman got injured and Daley with his situation. Where did all this come from?

“I thought about this a lot… I had a hamstring issue at the start of the season, but we don’t train differently. We do basically the same thing as last season. Maybe the summer break was too short?”

What are your thoughts before the kick off?

“That is always different. European nights are the best. When I walk onto the pitch in a full stadium I think about my youth. The games I watched in the stadium with my grandparents. We were all massive Ajax fans. And now I’m on the pitch and I look up to see my family on the stands. I will never get used to that.”

How big are the sacrifices you need to make, to get to the top?

“These are huge. But I don’t want it differently. This is my dream come true. But, I envy my brother Rody at times. I always go and watch him play. He plays with his mates, relaxed, and after the game they drink a couple of beers and have fun

Are you a party animal?

“In the summer I love going to places like Ibiza and party a bit. I also love singing along with songs in the pub but during the season I keep myself focused. No parties.”

Your bond with Rody, your brother, is special, right? He was very ill at one stage, with a tumor in his back. Did this affect you much?

“Rody is one of the most important people in my life. He knows me through and through and vice versa. Whenever something is going on, I call him first. And yes, his tumor, I have learned to appreciate life more, I think. I was 12 when he got sick and I was just starting at Ajax. I wanted to perform but I also had a lot of focus on my brother.”

There is a video about you two and when Rody talks about your bond, a tear rolls down his cheek. That is a famous video now… 

“Yes, that got me emotional too. And everyone who saw the video had that. Men cry too you know. Rody loves seeing me build my career and I love sharing my success with him. I was able to give him a cool watch for his 20st birthday with his name in it. He loves it. Rody is always there for me. Whenever I had a bad match, he takes me under his wing and we go and play pool or something…”

Rody said in the video that you are a hand-full. And when you didn’t train, it’s even worse

“Yes, I think I’m annoying. I have too much energy. I will start pestering people and make jokes etc.”

Fame, interviews, photo-shoots, talk about transfers, talk about the Ballon d’Or… you are not impressed?

“I think it’s the manner of the village I am from. Do normal. And that is me too. Yes, there is a lot happening in my life, but I will always have my feet planted firmly. And if I wouldn’t, my parents or brother will remind me, hahaha. I would enjoy going to these Ballon d’Or galas, just to experience it, but I would love to go home afterwards too, to leave all the humbug behind.”

For the football future of Holland, it is important that you and Estelle Bergkamp create the new Messi

“Oh yes hahaha, I get that comment a lot lately. If the good Lord wants us to become parents, there will be some pressure on the kid, if he is a boy. Or even a girl, actually! We can’t deny our genes, hahaha.”

How did you meet and does she get football?

“We met at Ajax and then we also met a couple of times outside of Ajax and it just grew a tad… I went out to lunch with her a couple of times and our bond became stronger. It did take a while before we were a thing. She gets football a lot! But that is normal with a dad like Dennis. She loves watching it and she can really analyse the game well. But she is more intrigued with how placid I can be outside of football and how worked up I can get on the pitch, hahahaha.”

Will she come with you to Madrid? Or Manchester?

“Should I go somewhere, she’ll come with yes. We are not officially living together but I basically live with her in Amsterdam.”

But Nijkerkerveen is still your village?

“Oh definitely! It’s home. I know everyone there, my mates live there and I go watch Veensche Boys regularly. Rody plays on Saturday mornings, and Mo Nouri, Appie’s brother, plays in it too. Mo quit football, because of Appie and the care he needs. He was feeling guilty too, playing football, and I told him that Abdelhak would totally want Mo to play football and enjoy himself. So now he’s playing with Rody in my village. He’s a great player, from the top of the amateur level. And the warmth of the village immediately pulled him in. Rody and I have contact with Mo Nouri every day.”

What is with the speculations of you going to Real Madrid?

“I haven’t signed anything. It’s all open. I know what I have here, I am valued and I love Ajax. I won’t go to just any other club. It needs to be the right picture. What are their plans. Am I signed for the future or do I get playing time? I’d love to play in a country with better weather, but I haven’t started Spanish lessons as yet.”

Do you talk about transfers with team mates?

“Sure, yes we do talk about it and I talk to the lads at Oranje about how things go with other clubs and in other countries, and all this. That is always interesting to hear.”

After I’m 30, I will return to Ajax, with Frenkie and Matthijs de Ligt.

“That would be fun. Ajax is my club and it will always be, wherever I end up. Ajax made me. But you never know how things go. There are many examples of players who said they would but never did. Or players who did come back but ended up playing in the second team… But, it would be nice, the thought you know. Returning here.”

It seems like Ajax is allowing players to leave, hoping they return one day?

“I don’t know. I don’t interfere with contract or transfer stuff. I think it’s normal and logical that Ajax wants to get a good amount for me. But I also think it is good to part ways amicably. There are many great examples.”

Do you speak to Frenkie and Matthijs a lot?

“Not a lot. Every now and then. During the season, we’re all super busy but we do app. And we see each other at Oranje and we take the time to chew the fat. These are all good lads, we share that bond. We’ve had such a great year, that will always bind us I think.”

The guys abroad are all playing in a glass house. Everything is magnified.

“True, but both are strong personalities and great players. I think they’ll manage. And you what, things like that, you get used to it. And I don’t think either one of them will lose sleep over what people write about them.”

So how do you call him? Dad? Mr? Or Dennis?

“I used to call him trainer, now I call him Dennis.”

So he didn’t say”Donny, I am Mr Bergkamp for you!”

“That would have been a good joke! But I know Dennis so long already and we always had a good bond. It was strange after he left Ajax, and I hadn’t seen him for a while…”

As Ajax youth coach, I remember him saying: “Watch that Van de Beek kid!”

“I was in my second year at Ajax and they didn’t put me in D1 but in D2. Luckily, he was my coach in the D2. I made a big leap under him. He was the most important coach for me actually, and he was important for me as assistant coach too.”

So did he ever say: “I have a nice daughter!” ?

“Never! Maybe he even thought: you, I rather not see outside of football, hahaha. And it was a coincidence that we met outside of Ajax. He enjoys us being together and I enjoy spending time with them.”

How did you enjoy Dennis as a player?

“I was a bit young when he played, but I have seen many videos, I mean… everyone knows what a magician he was.”

With me, Oranje has the best midfield in Europe.

“Well, I can only do my utmost to get in the team but we have so many good midfielders at the moment… And not just us, I mean…Belgium, France, Germany, Spain….so many good players….”

Do you get agitated when you see Marten de Roon’s name on the team sheet?

“Not at all! He did a great job and so do the other lads. The coach decides and I have to accept it. I know I am giving all I have. I can’t do more. And yes, I want to play, but every midfielder has his own qualities. Koeman will need to decide what he needs. I talk to him about that a lot, and he is open about his decisions and thoughts and all this. Koeman is a tremendous coach. He brought us to a big tournament and we’re really a team again. I am proud to be part of it and I want to help the team achieve something wonderful.”

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by Jan

Covid-19 impact and more news…

Eric Gudde, the KNVB GM on the photo. Symbol of Chaos.

Hi guys, hope you are all staying safe and sane without live football?

I was planning to make the Johan Cruyff 1990 post now, but the Covid situation deserves some attention – as commented on by some of you – and we had the news of Ronald Koeman’s hospitalisation as well.

To start with that, it is not clear what he has, exactly. Probably needs to have a vein clearance situation, as Ronald is known to enjoy the good life (wine, food).

He is given all the space to recover by the Federation and with our football agenda empty, he will get that time easily. People like his brother Erwin and Dick Advocaat already mentioned publicly that they expect him to return to his job, no worries.

The impact on the Dutch football scene of the Covid-19 situation is huge. As you will appreciate: most Dutch clubs are not wealthy and in the second tier – Keuken Kampioen Divisie – it is tough going.

Even a rich club like Ajax will get hurt, if this goes on too long and if we indeed have to play without fans for a long spell, it will everyone badly.

So the Dutch Federation decided to end the competition and as they believe there would have been time for the two relegation candidates to play themselves safe… So, in their infinite wisdom, they have decided not to relegate anyone and not to promote any club from the 2nd tier to the first.

As the UEFA does want to hear how the competition ended re: European spots, Ajax is the #1 (but not the champion) and goes straight into the CL. AZ will play CL qualification football with Feyenoord straight to the Europa League and PSV playing Europa League qualification, just like… Willem II. The Play Offs have been canceled and there is a fair chance that the Dutch Cup final  ( Feyenoord – FC Utrecht) will also be canceled.

There is a lot of anger about this amongst the clubs. Feyenoord probably the only club without any hang ups. Ajax wanted the title. AZ wanted a way to challenge Ajax for the title. PSV wanted the coefficient ratios over the last 5 seasons to be counted, so PSV would get the Feyenoord spot.

Cambuur coach Henk de Jong called this the “Blackest Day in Sports History” and that got him an interview on the BBC

FC Utrecht has the most reasons to complain, of them all. They had 1 game in hand, and 1 point behind Willem II. Their goal difference was better than that of Willem II. Based on this and on the coefficient ratios, FC Utrecht would have been the better choice to play European. Also, because they made it to the National Cup final.

RKC and ADO Den Haag ended up not being relegated. Good news for them. But both Cambuur and De Graafschap were miles ahead in the 2nd tier and would have been promoted in any other situation.

So, these clubs (Cambuur and De Graafschap) along with FC Utrecht are making their way to the courts.

People like Marco van Basten – independent as ever – have slammed the KNVB for their way of working: the outcome but also about the process used.

At some point, the KNVB wanted the clubs to vote for relegation of clubs or no relegation.

From the top of my head: 15 clubs said “YES” to relegation. 9 clubs said “NO” and the rest refused to vote (PSV, Ajax, Feyenoord, Groningen, Vitesse and others), as they “didn’t want to have a say in relegating their colleagues”.

FC Utrecht sad. RKC happy.

This tells you, that the non-voters actually did want the two bottom clubs to get relegated but they refused to say it. If not, they would have picked “NO”. Right?

But for some reason, the KNVB added the non-votes to the NO! Meaning that the majority allegedly voted NO to relegation. Which is just plain stupid.

I think the court cases are being held today/tomorrow.

The KNVB was capable of cancelling the competition because – as opposed to the situation in Spain, Germany and England – the tv money has been paid out in full, by Fox Sports, which is a good thing in a way.

So, in France (where they ended the competition as well) and Holland, the result of all this is anger, frustration and court cases.

Dutch consultants Hypercube have come up with an alternative plan, which would mean that all competitions will be played out after all!

They have pointed towards the World Cup in Qatar, which is being played in the Winter of 2022. So why not use this calendar year to finish the competition and start the new competition at the start of 2021. So use Calendar year as a season, instead of August till May.

Gini using the off-time to find out how his tools work…

Then, the Football Federations have the option to go back to the broken-calendar structure for football seasons after the World Cup 2022.

“This takes a lot of strain and pressure away from the clubs and the federations. The English and Germans want to finish the season whatever the cost, due to the tv money they need. The number of seasons remains intact. Every competition will have a winner, a champion and all decisions are made on the pitch and not in a board room or a court house”, so says Managing Director Pieter Nieuwenhuis. And the oft criticised winter World Cup in Qatar can suddenly be the solution we hoped for.

Nieuwenhuis: “This is way more sensible. Otherwise they’d have to plan competition games, European games and national team games from September onwards in a very full season, and if something goes wrong, we are all in deep doodoo again!”

Virgil van Dijk posted this

Hypercube also claimed that in 2023, the clubs/federations could decide to start with a short competition until the summer of 2023, and then go back to the normal structure, of August – May. “We calculated this through, as the clubs will suffer financially from this plan in the first months. We believe for Europe, there is a need for 8 Billion Euros to finance this. This is a lot, but if you take into account that the turnover of Football Europe is 30 Billion Euros, it’s not that bad. Surely, playing half a season in empty stadiums is even more costly.”

The UEFA and FIFA together have 3 Billion Euros in cash and could be guarantors. This would require zero subsidy money. Call it the Marshall Plan for football. “What we need now is a long term plan with solid financials, because if we just rush into this, certain clubs are at risk of going bankrupt.”

The big question though: what to do with players’ contracts, who now go from July till June.

“We don’t have all the answers. There are options, you could say: all players’ contracts will be shifted to the Jan – Dec format. Or, you could decide to keep the contract terms as is, meaning players will suddenly finish the season with another club. I think the international Players’ Unions will need to weigh in on this.

Memphis wants the cup in 2021

As for the Covid-19 impact on our lads… I don’t think there is any. Players like Memphis and Malen will have more time to get fit, and apart from Babel and Strootman, all our players will benefit from the additional time to get ready for the Euros. Blind can deal with his heart issue (we hope), as will Koeman. Zirkzee, Wijndal, Stengs, Boadu, Kluivert, Karsdorp, Bijlow and others will have a bit more time to build on their strength, while Marco van Ginkel might be joining in again as well?

A fit Koeman, a super motivated Memphis, Malen in form and Frenkie with a strong Barca season in his back pocket, why wouldn’t we win the Euros this time?

How are you guys doing? Share your stories below.

 

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by Jan

Kluivert to Manchester City??

Hi all, I hope you are all doing well, despite the threat of that virus or the disadvantages of the lockdowns and not working etc? And of course, being without some serious football….

I have some posts in the making but I’m very busy as well, trying to keep my business alive. If you are doing well, this is the time to donate some beer money, hahaha… Thanks in advance!

I have more posts on our talents coming up, more videos for you guys to enjoy and the 1990 Johan Cruyff Debacle story… A cool interview with Donny van de Beek and a profile on Justin Kluivert.

Who is NOT signed by Man City. The headlines in the sports media were quite fun: Kluiverth signed by Man City. But Kluiverth being his first name. Aguilar his surname.

His dad was a fan of Barcelona and enjoyed Patrick a lot.

A fun fact: this is not the first player to be named after a Dutch player. This can definitely result in cool names for cool players: Yohan Cabay, named after our Johan. Or Dennis Bergkamp, named after Denis Law…

Rudigullithi da Silva Henrique

Kluiverth is not a bad first name to have….

The most beautiful name of a player, based on a Dutch player is…hold for it….not Cruyff, Vandervaart or Persie, no no… Wanderkhof! Yes. Dad was a fan of the PSV Twins Willy and Rene van de Kerkhof! And it gets better, because this is his second first name, so to speak. His actual first name is Petroswickonicovick. Yes. Imagine you’re the match commentator when he plays.

This kid was a prolific goal scorer for Corinthians.

Then there is a striker in Albania. He made it to the Albanian national team. The name: Marko van Basten Cema.

Or the Brazilian defender, 26 years old, with a short stint in Portugal. He was with Cruzeiro and Sao Paolo and is now playing in Brazil again, for Bento. The name is  Rudigullithi da Silva Henrique. He has competition, there is A Finnish player called Gullit Zolameso, named after Ruud Gullit (duh) and Gianfranco Zola who once played together at Chelsea. This kid plays regularly for Finnish youth rep teams.

In Malta, the 26 year old Cruyff Grixty plays at the second tier on the island, something JC would be ashamed of.

Neeskens Kebano vs Vertonghen of Spurs

The best career of them all is for Neeskens Kebano. France born’s dad was huge Johan Neeskens fan. He played for Fulham and for Paris St Germain. He is a national team player for Congo. In Honduras, we have Neeskens Almendares, who played for Lobos.

Wulf Koronia Kluivert Shevcengko Horota. Yes indeed! Named after Dutch Defender John de Wolf (what??), the Corona virus, Patrick Kluivert and Andrej Shevcencho. The Indonesian does play pro football for Persipura.

And it’s not just Dutch player names which are used for kids, who then become players themselves. There are the most amazing concoctions. I will mention a series here, but one name is false. One name I made up. You leave a comment with your best guess. Winner gets a prize :-).

There is Creedence Clearwater Couto, we had Metuzalem, Mozart, Adriano Michael Jackson, Ziyech Ziyech, John Lennon Silva Santos, Lineker da Silva Matos, Ben-Hur and Mahatma Gandhi. Stalin Motta played national team football, and Kluivert Aguilar? He has a brother: Rijkaard.

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by Jan

Oranje for your Lockdown: Part 2

With everyone in lock down (see Van Persie and son practising in their backyard above)… some entertainment for you!

This is part two of classic matches of Dutch football. Obviously, there are many more classic matches of non-Dutch clubs but with Dutch players, that are great to re-watch. Anything Van Nistelrooy at Man U. Or the three Milan icons (Van Basten, Rijkaard and Kuyt). Seedorf at Real Madrid. Makaay at Bayern Munich.

I must confess, I totally forgot the European campaign in 1988 by PSV, winning the Europa Cup.

The finals vs Benfica was a forgettable match, as were the semi finals vs Real Madrid.

Therefore, this high light video on Romario and his hattrick.

Youtube is your friend!

The Dutch National Team

So, we’re entering the 1990s. And in 1990, the WC in Italy should have been ours. But it became a deception. I’ll skip those games. There was literally nothing uplifting in that whole scenario. The qualifications were bmweh due to arguments between coach Libregts and Ruud Gullit and the tournament became a complete disaster, as Michels refused to appoint Cruyff as coach and the players – consciously or subconsciously – sabotaged the tournament, under Leo Beenhakker.

Oranje needed to rise up and re-establish itself for the 1992 Euros and did so with some fresh blood, like Danny Blind, Richard Witschge, Dennis Bergkamp and Bryan Roy. Van Basten netted 5 goals in the 0-8 thrashing of Malta.

The 1992 tournament was a fun one, and one we could have won. The Danish beach goers were called back when Yugoslavia was banned and the Danish Dynamite won the tournament. But not after Oranje impressed again. Bergkamp’s goal vs Germany was a big one and Van Basten missing a key penalty vs Schmeichel was also quite the milestone.

Note how Van Basten directs Bergkamp’s goal…

For the qualification of the WC1994 in the US, Oranje had England in the group. We played some epic games against them. Slowly more new players entered into the fray: Ed de Goeij, goalie, there was Frank de Boer but also two players from Champs Feyenoord: Rob Witschge and John de Wolf, while journeyman Peter van Vossen popped onto the radar due to his scoring spree in Belgium.

The away game at Wembley was sensational.

As was the home game…. Notice Rijkaard’s goal flagged offside while he was yards on!

You can find the WC1994 matches online no doubt. It wasn’t to be for us. The heat in Florida, the lack of leader Gullit and some bad referee mistakes cost us our progress. We went out vs Brazil.
After a great come back…

We weren’t happy with the result and Dick Advocaat’s popularity went down when he returned from the US to declare that if you’re among the best 16 in the world, it’s not that bad…

In the run up to the England Euros, Hiddink tried some different players, from Eijkelkamp to Johan de Kock, from Orlando Trustfull to Youri Mulder. The latter scored an essential late goal at home to secure 3 points vs the Belarus. This was a must win game.

It’s sub Trustfull passing deep to sub Mulder, and in the dying minutes he scores 1-0. Mulder who was called up a day before the game when Kluivert ended up with an injury.

The Euro 1996 in England was a tournament to forget. We did play some interesting matches, but overall the theme for this tournament was the rift within the Ajax squad, the insulting comments by Davids and Hiddink sending Davids home for the remainder of the tournament.

After this tournament, Hiddink fixed the rift and started his prep for the 1998 World Cup. This was a friendly in Amsterdam, between Brazil and Oranje. JP Van Gastel, recently at Feyenoord as assistant coach, makes his debut as a sub would score a late goal.

Hiddink adds more names to the squad, as the old guard, like van Der ar, Valckx, Stam, Bogarde, Van Hooijdonk and Van Bronckhorst.

Here another forgotten match, at home vs Wales (qualification game).

The 1998 WC is probably one of the most popular campaigns by the Dutch, with amazing performances by Bergkamp, Frank de Boer, Edgar Davids and Phillip Cocu. Most matches will be etched in the memories forever, as is one of the most famous Dutch goals ever…

This next one is the same goal, but with commentary of Jack van Gelder :-).

Heartbreak was huge, when Oranje was kicked out of the tournament by Brazil, in a game that we should have won. Late in the match, Van Hooijdonk is clearly fouled but the ref “forgets” to point to the spot.

As the Dutch co-hosted the 2000 Euros, they didn’t have to play qualifiers. But this friendly vs Belgium is a must see game.

Club Teams

Ajax had a spectacular run in the 90s, after having won a European trophy in the late 80s, under Cruyff, it was Louis van Gaal’s turn. Ironically, Van Gaal was once seen as Cruyff’s successor at Ajax, as a playmaker. Now he was in JC’s footsteps as a coach.

In 1992, Ajax won vs Torino in the finals, but the semis with Genoa were more epic.

This Ajax was going to be built into the world class 1995 team.

In 1996, they reached the finals again, to be beaten by Juventus.

In 1997, Van Gaal almost went all the way again. This quarter final vs Atletico is also a classic epic!

Feyenoord and PSV also competed internationally for Holland, but their European campaigns were not that unforgettable.Bookmark and Share