Tag: Rosario

Oranje fans: e-unite!

Hi all, this is our safe space. This is where we can hang out all of us, safely, without fear of contamination. I mean, COVID19 contamination of course. Because we do have some other viruses going around here, which hopefully are not contagious… The Kuyt-is-bad-virus. The Daley-Blind-Is-In-Oranje-because-his-dad-used-to-be-virus. More dangerous than Corona, of course.

Enough jokes! I hope everyone is well? Safe? At home with family? And taking care of business!

I read that this virus has the most dramatic impact on men!! No more football, no more pub crawls, no more music events or partying, while women can still do what they do: cooking, ironing, vacuum cleaning, laundry… It’s not fair!

ENOUGH JOKES, I SAID!

Let me know how you are all going, below in the comments. There is still a lot of fun for us Oranje fans. Youtube is filled with super dooper clips. And we have this blog of course…

The news will come to you faster via other channels, so I won’t even try to be bringing you scoops.

But we do need to talk Euro tournament and the impact of the virus.

So I think common sense prevailed, we will not have the Euros this summer. A big bummer for most, but the Dutch will probably count their chickens… Memphis, Malen, Bergwijn… And more time for Zirkzee and Karsdorp and Wijndal and Boadu… It’s not that bad.

I do hope the competitions will be finalised properly and I hope this particularly for Liverpool!

I’m not going to go into conspiracy theories here or what this whole panic pandemonium means, there are heaps of comments and posts on social media and tweets and what not to deal with this.

So, we’ll keep our eye on the ball here, as far as I am concerned.

There is stuff to read, this blog to get with and start interacting more often, there are amazing youtube clips and classic games to enjoy too.

LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 19: A general view (GV) of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Davinson Sanchez of Tottenham and goalkeeper Hugo Lloris clear up toilet paper thrown on the pitch by the Leipzig fans during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between Tottenham Hotspur and RB Leipzig at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on February 19, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

Tell me below how you guys get through all this.

I’ll start:

I’m working from home, in a remote little beach town in Australia. Life is going as per usual, with the exception of the availability of toilet paper!

I spend more time watching movies, as opposed to watching football and I probably hit the sack earlier. I can freely check the sports sites without the risk of seeing a final score of a game I have yet to watch.

I’m intrigued by this whole global shit show and focus – as an amateur anthropologist – on that, on American politics and other geo-political stuff.

We are not stocking food and supplies but take it all as it comes.

And you?

What Mo Ihattaren can offer Oranje

The news that PSV youngster Mo Ihattaren selected to play for Oranje, over Morocco brought a huge smile to Ronald Koeman’s face. And if it wasn’t for some private matters the playmaker needed to attend to, he might well have made it in the squad for the Northern Ireland and Estonia games.

After Hakim Ziyech ditched Oranje, the focus from Zeist changed. Got sharper. Apparently, Oranje lost some of its glare and glamour internationally, and it was clear we needed to make a bigger effort to keep the big talents on board.

Mo Ihattaren was the next big name prospect that was courted by Morocco. They were able to turn Mazraoui and Amrabat their way, two players that most likely could have played for Oranje, but were never considered “key”.

Ziyech is of course in the category “extraordinary” and Mo should also been seen like this.

It’s actually quite remarkable how the whole nation started to get involved with Ihattaren’s future (partly fueled by the dramatic miss of Ziyech). But Ihattaren only had a limited number of miles on the clock, of course. He made his debut this year, in January, as a sub. He played not more than 19 games as a starter in all competitions. And in those matches he left such an impression that Koeman was definitely ready to gift the midfielder his debut, at 17 years and 9 months old. What makes him so special?

Ziyech on the left (Morocco) and Mo in the middle (Netherlands)

His breakthrough tells the story. He is only 16 years old when Van Bommel uses him in the match vs FC Groningen (Cruyff also made his debut vs Groningen, but that is probably a coincidence).

Usually, young talents are introduced in teams that are in form. This allows them to try the big stage, to blend in where others can back them up and to give them confidence. But in the phase where PSV is playing lacklustre and weak, Mo goes from benchwarmer to starter. It says a lot about the faith Van Bommel has in the youngster. Ihattaren doesn’t come in to a well-oiled machine. He is actually the oil, Mark van Bommel needs to get his team playing again. With him in the team, PSV wins three games in a row after the winter break. The top talent gets a new contract (till 2022) and a fixed spot in the squad.

No. 10 – The Playmaker or Right Wing

Ihattaren can be used on two positions in the PSV system ( 4-2-3-1). As a left footed right forward he can dribble inside to open up the play with different options (shoot, dribble, pass, one-two). Van Bommel uses him here at the start of the season.  This is where he can grow into the team, so to speak, as this spot demands less from him, in a physical sense.

But, after a handful of games, Van Bommel knows enough and puts him on the #10 spot. This starts in September, away against RKC. The left footer starts on the right again but when RKC leads 1-0, the PSV coach moves Mo to the axis of the field. He is key in creating the equaliser and the winning goal and proves that he is the guy who fuels the attacking machine of PSV.

This limited number of games proves that the talent does best in the axis for PSV. When comparing his stats, you’ll see that whether he plays on the right or centrally does not impact the number of dribbles. But the number of chances created explodes when Mo plays centrally: 4 times more than when he plays on the flank. He also clearly demonstrates that physically, he is very capable of holding his own.

He is also present when PSV is struggling and needs something special. PSV drew against LASK Linz (0-0) and Sparta Rotterdam (2-2) but that was not for lack of trying by him. Ihattaren created in these games 9 (!) chances for his team mates.  PSV lost the second game vs LASK 4-1, but Mo created three of the four chances PSV created. Last season, his brilliance were the remedy for a sluggish PSV. This season he is one of the leading players for PSV.

Ihattaren as starter 2019/20

Aspect Right Wing # 10
Chances created * 0,66 2,3
Successful dribbles 54% 48%

*Per match

The steps this kid makes are actually giant leaps! As a 17 year old, he is one of the first players on the team sheet for Van Bommel. In Oranje, however, he will have to settle for the spot on the right flank, it seems. And that has everything to do with how Koeman looks at his team. Koeman believes in couples, in duos.. Players that gel well. “I don’t want to take the couple Wijnaldum and Memphis apart, jut like I prefer Bergwijn with Dumfries on the right”. As Memphis is the wandering playmaker for Oranje now, Wijnaldum’s role is more a penetrating and running one. Getting in the box as a false striker. Wijnaldum and Donny van de Beek are the types Koeman is looking for there. Ihattaren plays with a striker (Malen) who himself is more a dynamic, penetrating runner, so Mo can use his through ball to bring him in position.

In Oranje, Ihattaren seems to be the solution for the problem raised by Koeman after the lost Nation Leagues final : “Defensively and in midfield, we’re ok. But up front, we could use some more creativity.” Against Estonia, Northern Ireland and Belarus Oranje was lacking creativity in the small spaces, around Memphis. The job opening of a false winger with the gift of the slide-rule through pass seems to be the ideal role for Ihattaren. Also because, like Bergwijn, he is used to play with Dumfries…

Life goes fast for the youngster. His tremendous potential was known already, both nationally and internationally. The public is now also aware of the capabilities of the kid. It only takes a view on the clip of Young PSV vs Young Barcelona in the Youth League, of November last year. He is the youngest on the pitch and gets the ball on the edge of the box. In between two defenders he turns, looks quickly over his shoulder and backheels the ball into the path of Vertessen who scores. His composure on the ball, under pressure, his vision and creativity…

Everyone who worked with him, will use the term “extraordinary”. Whether it’s Marcel Brands, Mark van Bommel, Bert van Marwijk or Kees van Wonderen. And they are not alone, as scouts and reps of Barcelona, Man City, Chelsea and Inter Milan have already knocked on the door of Mo’s agent Henk-Maarten Chin.

Kristof Aelbrecht – currently assistant coach at Fortuna Sittard – worked with him in the U16s. “In the PSV youth, it was always Little Mo this, Little Mo that. I immediately told him, that is not how I will work with you. From now on, you are Big Mo! And I need you to think and act like a pro. The kids were always looking at scoring, or assists. When you enter the U16 realm it’s also about physical, about mentality, about nutrition and rest. Are you coachable, that sort of thing. It’s about awareness. In my time, Mo always made the difference. We played away against Roda JC at some stage and he wasn’t top fit. I took him out after an hour. He wasn’t taking care of his tasks. Well, that was a first for him! I didn’t do this because I liked doing it, but I had to make a point. He was disappointed, offended and simply angry. He was so pissed off that he refused to get on the bus. His brother Yassir couldn’t even bring him to reason.

Yassir and Mo Ihattaren

Yassir: “He said: take me home now or I stay here. I couldn’t leave him so we drove back in my car. And it was a constant rant: That coach this, that coach that, etc etc. I told him: accept it! Your coach was right! it was a long drive, hahaha. But when we got close to home, I really got fed up and stopped the car. I looked at him and said: Listen!! We support you with the whole family. We do everything for your dream! And you won’t ruin it because you are a spoilt kid! This is Kanalen-eiland (the suburb where Mo lives in Utrecht). This is where the kids hang who haven’t made it. The chances for these kids to leave this behind are slim. Make up your mind. What do you want?”

And thus, both brothers made an appointment with coach Aelbrecht to ask him, what Mo needed to do to improve. Aelbrecht and his assistant Adil Ramzi grabbed some video images and showed Mo that he simply wasn’t fit enough.

So, he started with a new diet and he started to work on his lung capacity and endurance. Every morning at 6 am, Mo woke and went for a run. That was in 2017. Today, Mo Ihattaren is super fit.

Aelbrecht: “I had times that I feared I lost him. That I was too tough on him, but he picked it up. We at PSV had to stay true to our values and now you can see what an incredible player he has become.”

Yassir Ihattaren tells the story, but it could also have been told by his sister, his other brothers or his parents. Because the whole family is involved with the dream of the youngest in the family. Ihattaren Incorporated, one could call it.

His older brother gave up his job as teacher history to manage and assist his brother. Yassir and another brother were talents too but their careers ended in the top of the amateur class, as the parents were simply not capable to assist with their careers. With Benjamin Mo, it’s another story as the older brothers jump in to assist. Mo’s father passed away tragically last month.

The whole family keeps Mo in check and keep on motivating him and inspiring him. “Whenever Mo wants to buy something expensive, we will all give our opinion and sometimes we say “hey buddy, stay normal please!” hahahaha.”

Marcel Brands was PSV’s technical director for years and he remembers seeing the little Mo on the PSV youth grounds. “I’d ask him after his match: Mo, how was the match? And he’d say something like: Good. I scored three and two assists. So funny.” When Brands left for Everton, the club immediately wanted to talk about the #10 in the PSV youth. Brands: “I am happy that he’s still at PSV. Don’t get me wrong, if he wants to come here, I’d be over the moon, but I think he needs to stay. Play a couple of seasons at PSV, make your debut in Oranje and go abroad when you’re really ready. It’s a big step.”

Yassir is adamant that Henk-Maarten Chin will be their agent to stay. “We have had them all, Riola, Jansen, you name them. But Henk-Maarten is also family now. We’re loyal people. And we don’t need anyone to bring Mo to the top. Mo will bring Mo to the top.”

The experts say this.

Bert van Marwijk assisted Van Bommel last season and is quite clear about Ihattaren: “It says a lot always when the players who have arrived accept a youngster just like that. They look for him, they trust him. You see it with Frenkie at Barcelona as well. He’s already part of the key players there. And Mo is also a player that solves problems. Mo thinks ahead, like a chess player. He is always two steps ahead. His biggest enemy is complacency.”

Art Langeler used to be Head of Youth Development at PSV. “We have developed a trajectory which gives him the best chances to reach his potential. From an Oranje perspective, we also need to do all we can to give him the right vibe. I don’t even want him to doubt his choice for Holland.”

Kees van Wonderen won the European title with Oranje U17 with Mo Ihattaren in the team. “He played almost everything and was important for the team. He is very skilled, tactically shrewd and mentally strong. He is also happy to do the dirty work and make dirty yards if possible. And his family is important. They won’t put him on a pedestal. They’re critical and he is open to criticism. There are no guarantees but Mo has everything to become a top player.”

Player Ratings and Future Stars

I had this post on future Oranje players getting ready to go and decided to start with some Player Ratings for y’all, as I am seeing so many Anti Blind comments…. I simply have to respond to that.

Thanks to all for joining in and I am totally ok with discussions and differences of opinions. That is all fine.

But some of you (Wilson being one, Tiju being another) simply keep harping on against – usually – one player. Like a hate campaign. As if that player can’t do anything right. Wilson has it with Daley, Tiju had it with Dirk. I think both had it with Memphis.

We can all safely say that Dirk Kuyt is a Dutch icon. Memphis’ stats are through the roof and Daley is the connaisseur’s player.

Yes, Daley made a defensive error this weekend vs Heerenveen (and they scored) but he also had an array of superb passes. Any coach will take the defensive weakness, as no defender is 100% tight. Look at De Ligt at Juve. Or this weekend Pique allowing two goals at Barca. Just score one more up front, guys!

Again, I am fine with people pointing out the negatives, but I believe it becomes a witch hunt when:

  1. they can’t add anything positive, but just keep on repeating the same old stuff… Wilson on Blind’s defensive weaknesses and Tiju did this with Kuyt’s lack of technique (both are wrong, by the way… Blind is a tremendous defender, but simply slow… Kuyt had magnificent match technique, but he wasn’t a circus artist, like Vanenburg or Davids)
  2. irrelevant things are brought into the discussion (like Danny Blind protecting son Daley)
  3. disrespectful arguments are used (“Sonny Boy” which points to the Danny – Daley family link)

Every player has negatives, apart from a couple world class players we have… That – for me – applies to Virgil and Frenkie. All other Oranje players do have some weaknesses… Memphis, Gini, De Ligt, Blind…all of them.

Coaches tend to pick the team which is able to 1)strengthen each other strengths and 2) compensate each others weaknesses… This is probably why all Dutch NT coaches pick Blind. His weaknesses can be compensated, while his strengths are really needed.

Frank de Boer, Louis van Gaal, Guus Hiddink, Ronald Koeman, Erik Ten Hag… what connects these coaches? Answer: They all rate Daley Blind really high.

Why? Because of his speed and his goals!

Just kidding. They rate Daley really high because of his 1) ability to read the game, 2) his exquisite passing range, 3) his thrifty possession, 4) his positioning.

Erik Ten Hag: “Daley Blind is my extension on the pitch. He sees what needs to happen first and gets the message across to the other players.”

Dusan Tadic (Ajax #9): “I love Daley Blind behind me. He is our Beckenbauer.”

Blind’s last season at Ajax (centre back) is considered to be one of the key performers for the Amsterdam club. By analysts, football commentators, supporters, ex-players and by coaches. The only two people who don’t seem to see this are Wilson and Tiju. Apparently. But who knows? They might have way better insights in football than Van Gaal, Ten Hag and Koeman….

Complaining about Blind’s lack of speed is like complaining about Overmars’ lack of header goals. Or complaining about Bergkamp not stopping any penalties. Or complaining about Dumfries not being able to dribble past 3 opponents. Or complaining about Memphis weak sliding tackles.

We should be grateful to have Blind in our squad, like the coaches are all grateful and most of the Oranje fans are. I’m fine with people not “liking” a certain player… I’m personally not a big fan of Strootman, but I am a huge Oranje fan and I support the lads and the coaches and I would never vomit all this negativity about players without any real substance.

So, lets have a look at our squad.

Jasper Cillesen

Maybe not world class (like Neuer, De Gea or Ellison) but definitely a top notch goalie. Good enough for Oranje. And with Vermeer, Krul, Bizot and Zoet all at the right age and a couple of youngster making their name (Bijlow, Scherpen, Kelle Roos) we should be ok for shot stoppers.

Daley Blind

World class versatile player. Master in reading the game and positioning. Great passing and distribution. He sent Memphis away for a corner and delivered it on Van Dijk’s head, leading up to the 1-2.

Virgil Van Dijk

Needs no further kudos. World Class with capital letters. Will win the Ballon D’Or. Strong. Tall. Quick. Composed. Leader. Concrete. Tower. Goal threat in the opponent box.

Matthijs De Ligt

On his way to become Virgil Mark II. Only 19 years old. Courageous. Tall and strong and quicker than you think. Great build up pass. Needs to develop tactically and in terms of positioning. Looked great at Ajax thanks to mentor Blind (something he’ll miss at Juve).

Denzel Dumfries

Still in development. Late bloomer. Strong body, quick, athletic, tall and good header. Still lacks smooth technique and is probably the weak spot in the current team. Alternatives Veltman and Tete lack the forward thrust Denzel offers. Karsdorp is probably a better option on all counts, bar the header capabilities.

Frenkie de Jong

The brains in midfield. Oozes class. Velvet touches, great dribbles and that winner mentality allowing him to win balls back. Explosive speed. Tremendous vision and courage.

Marten de Roon

Strongholder in midfield. More destroyer than creator. Has had great moments and has had terrible moments. Passing and technique are average. Work rate and tackling is top notch. A water bearer in the team. Good to have in the squad but we should have a player on his spot who can do it all (like Davids, Cocu or Van Bommel before him).

Gini Wijnaldum

Marathon Man. Strong in possession. Fierce without the ball. Amazing mentality and wonderful technique. Works and sacrifices himself without a problem. Needs a cooler head in the box and should score more. Does need too many chances for a goal. Could use a bit more vision to aid the team in the build up, Frenkie-style. When on fire, good for 1,5 player.

Quincy Promes

Jack-of-all-Trades. Good runner with and without the ball. Can score goals. Can assist. Can play alsmost everywhere on the pitch and never complaining when moved from left winger to right winger to right full back. Positive mentality and unpredictable. He is the first to have to worry for his spot with Bergwijn and Malen on the up and up.

Memphis Depay

World class potential, suffering a bit from ego and overconfidence. Can work magic if all goes his way and can be agitatingly annoying when things don’t work out. Sensational right foot. Confident. Cheeky. Wonderful vision and superb ball skills. Strong body as well.

Ryan Babel

The Come Back Kid. Had a great spell in his younger days, with his speed, his hip-shot and opportunistic playing style. Came back from the cold and is more a team player now. Covering the left flank, tracking back, supporting players with dummy runs and scoring important goals. Tremendous work rate and the wise old mentor in the squad. Might lose his spot in the starting eleven but Koeman will probably keep on selecting him due to his off-pitch qualities in the group.

Davy Propper

A light version of Frenkie de Jong. Has similar ball capabilities, has tremendous vision as well and great in the build up. Should score more (like Frenkie!) and lacks Frenkie’s explosiveness and speed. Should be player at a better club as he will definitely play better in a stronger team. Quiet achiever and in my view a better player to start with than De Roon.

Nathan Ake

The perfect 12th man. Can slot into midfield, central defence or left back. Perfect mentality, focused, more than average ball skills, strong header of the ball and great team player. Won’t get into the team as long as De Ligt and Van Dijk are ahead of him but a great utility player to have.

Donyell Malen

Brings something fresh and new. Very quick, with and without ball. The ability, smarts and willingess to make dummy runs and keep the opponent busy. Cold as ice in the box and has eye for the team mate in a better position.

Steven Bergwijn

All round attacker. Quick, good ball skills, dribbling ability and knows how to score a goal. Used as a winger, striker and #10 at PSV, and still looking for his best position. Might be the ideal stand-in for Memphis, or he might push Promes out of the team.

Patrick van Aanholt

Highly athletic full back, covering the whole flank. Defensively vulnerable but strong going forward and the ability to score. Has a canon of a left foot but tactically naive.

Joel Veltman

Versatile player, able to play right back, left back and centre back. Lacks length for the centre back role but still a strong header of the ball. Overall a good player, without any real apparent strengths. Focused and mentally strong. Lacks speed and won’t cover the whole flank. Tough in the personal duels.

Luuk de Jong

Wonderful header of the ball. Courageous and a real leader. Can score goals, but lacks speed and technical skills in the smaller spaces. Useful as pinch hitter, not as a starter. Beats Weghorst in the pinch hitter category. Good in hold up play too.

Stefan de Vrij

No nonsense defender. Fully focussed and mentally strong. Good build up pass and great header of the ball. Not the quickest but also not the slowest. Lacks the “Virgil” charisma but could well be a starter in the Oranje eleven. Keeps head above water as a defender, in the Land of Defenders.

Tonny Vilhena

Again, multi functional player. Can play in all positions in midfield and left full back or wing back. Will warm the bench (like Ake) without complaining. Will always earn his Heineken. Amazing energy and work ethic. Good left foot and tremendous drive. Sometimes over does things with his abundant energy and tends to run with the ball too much. Perfect team player.

Steven Berghuis

Top technical skills, wonderful vision and winner mentality. Lacks speed and wants the ball in his feet. Has a wand of a left foot and tremendous goal scoring and assisting abilities as a result. Lacks body and power at times and loses his temper easily. Still looking to find his ideal spot in the team. Not an out and out winger, but also not a real midfielder. Ideal #10 in a 4-3-3 with two holding mids. Probably never headed a ball in his life.

Justin Kluivert

Prodigal son. Wonderful speed and almost perfectly two footed. Can play left and right up front. Needs to play more consistently and decision making needs to improve (quite normal for a young player). Still a lot to develop but unpredictable and has great confidence and composure. This needs to be his season with Roma.

Kevin Strootman

At times a pitiful picture. Was considered the natural successor to Mark van Bommel and even given the captains armband at some point but two massive knee injuries took the sharpness away and Strootman without the legs to do what Strootman does best is not a good Strootman anymore. Lost his starting spot and might lose his spot in the squad once Van de Beek and players like Rosario or Eijting, Ihattaren and/or Stengs make their way into the squad. With De Roon, De Jong and Propper in the midfield, Strootman will not much longer be needed… Koeman does hail his attitude and leadership off the pitch and will probably not write him off until after the EC2020.

Are there players out there that should be in the squad in place of some player above?

I don’t think so. Wout Weghorst, some say. He would be used as pinch hitter, I don’t think Koeman will pick a team that would suit his “normal” game. And for pinch hitting tasks, I agree with Koeman: Luuk de Jong is better.

Obviously, I am not in favour of taking Daley Blind out. Within months, I do expect Stengs to take Berghuis position soon, while Van de Beek will push Strootman out, I think.

But it takes more than a list of names… It’s up to Koeman to pick the players that form the best team, not necessarily the eleven best players. And to concoct a tactics that works with the players, and offers us the best chance to win, while playing attractive football.

Future Stars of Oranje

We were so spoilt for choice in the past. We had Ruud Geels, Dick van Dijk, Johan Cruyff, Cor van der Gijp and other going for the striker role in the 70s. Or we had Van Basten, Boskamp, Kieft, Gilhaus in the 80, Makaay, Kluivert, Van Hooijdonk, Hasselbaink, Van Nistelrooy in the 90s and the likes of Huntelaar, Van Persie, Kuyt, Robben and more in the 00’s… Where are the world class strikers of today? Weghorst, Dost, Luuk de Jong? Nah… not world class.

Vincent Janssen? Nope. But we do see some amazing talent coming up, able to take some pressure of golden wonder boy Memphis Depay (just look at his stats).

Donyell Malen PSV (20 years old)

The obvious choice, after his amazing run in his first two matches for Oranje and the 5 goals he scored last weekend! Boom! Developed at Ajax, made his way to Arsenal and returned to Holland (PSV) to get some playing time. His key quality: skill in confined spaces, speed and the willingness (!) to keep on making the dummy runs!

Cody Gakpo PSV (20 years old)

Blessed with a right foot like David Beckham. Long legs, good stride. Amazing vision and a cool head. Like with Robben, you know he cuts back to his fave foot but he’ll keep on doing it and he’ll get away with it. Very elegant player, who could well go the same route as Phillip Cocu (from left winger to strong holder in midfield and ending up as skipper at Barca).

Myron Boadu AZ Alkmaar (18 years old)

Lightning quick player at AZ. returning from tough injury, but scoring easily again. Nose for the right spot and cool as ice in the box. Still missed easy chances so needs to work on his decision making. Very likeable chap too. Down to Earth. The real deal, this one!

Mitchell van Bergen Heerenveen (19 years old)

Was 16 years old when making his debut for Vitesse, the youngest player ever (for Vitesse). He ended up warming the bench and made a move to Heerenveen where he is a starter and he plays for Young Oranje. Compared to Robben when he broke through but his key strength is his speed. Mitch is one of the quickest players you’ll see, capable of scoring and providing the assist.

Calvin Stengs – AZ Alkmaar (20 years old)

A highly playful winger, a one-of-a-kind player whose perfect position needs to be found, as Stengs can play central striker (and score), play winger and provide and play midfielder and make the play. Very gifted, great vision, athletic and effective. Missed the Young AZ experience due to a terrible injury keeping him out a full season. Everything is effortless with Stengs and it’s only a matter of time or he’ll claim the right winger role in Oranje, like Ziyech plays that role for Ajax.

Mo Ihattaren PSV (17 years old)

Not a real forward, but an offensive midfielder / playmaker but for me, the most impressive talent since…well…Frenkie de Jong. Ihattaren’s name presented itself already some years ago when he impressed in Oranje under 15 and his reputation keeps on building. Once you have watched him play 45 minutes, you can see what a potential world class player he is. He is young, but he reads the game, plays without fear, has the physique of a 24 year old and has everything to end up at Real Madrid or Man City within 2 years and be a force at those clubs to be reckoned with. The only issues with him: 1) keeping him healthy, 2) keeping him grounded and 3) making sure he will pick Oranje to play for, as Morocco is very keen to enlist his services.

The next pack is on its way….

And there is more coming, in the group just below the lads described above. We know the names: Tahith Chong (19) at ManU. Joshua Zirkzee at Bayern (18), Daishawn Redan (18) at Hertha. Brian Brobbey (17, Ajax) and Naoufal Bannis (17, Feyenoord) impress as well and are on the verge of making more minutes in the first teams.

Ajax wins trophies, PSV deserves applause

The season has ended… Most of the decisions are in. Yes, the play offs for European Football and Promotion/Relegation are still on, but the key decisions are in: Ajax wins the double (and had one leg in the CL finals as well of course), and NAC gets relegated.

We will congratulate Ajax here on a sensational season! A season that made us all drool. Not just us Dutchies, but football fans from across the planet fell in love with this Ajax team!

They won matches, they won trophies, they outplayed the bigger guns (Benfica, Bayern, Real Madrid, Juve, Spurs) and were so close to playing the CL finals! And all of this with great football.

So, expect more posts on Ajax and Oranje in the coming month!!

Interviews with Ten Hag, Overmars, analysis of their games, the Ajax future, etc.

Expect more on the Nations League too, of course.

But despite Ajax’ successes and my inbred support for Feyenoord, this posts needs to give some deserved credit to PSV Eindhoven!

It’s not my club. But this season they really impressed and Ajax coach Ten Hag did praise them, as they kept Ajax sharp (and vice versa) throughout the season.

Because we tend to forget that PSV had its complete technical management replaced, this last summer. Marcel Brands left for Everton. Cocu went on his Turkish dream nightmare job and the youth academy coach left as well.

WK 2010 reunion, with from left to right: Mark van Bommel (standing), Arjen Robben, Technical Manager John de Jong, Nigel de Jong (unrelated), Wes Sneijder and Bert van Marwijk

John de Jong (former PSV midfielder) took over from Brands while Mark van Bommel was promoted from the youth system (PSV2) to the first team.

And the headstrong and outspoken Van Bommel left his mark immediately.

And credit where credit is due! He put his team out there. He instilled his principles into the team. And he started winning games like no tomorrow.

On the first day of the season, Ajax dropped points (Heracles) while PSV won. The two points lead was there all the way until only a couple of weeks ago!

And PSV didn’t dazzle. PSV did win some games in a “fortunate manner”. And they were bumped out of Europe in the CL group stages.

But lets look at at that more closely.

Van Bommel instilled a more modern and dynamic playing style into the team. “I want my teams to be the boss. That doesn’t mean we need the ball all the time, it also doesn’t mean we want to be playing some fantasy football or be attacking all the time. It means we determine what is going on, also without the ball.”

The personality of Mark van Bommel made its way into the team and with some strong signings, he did squeeze the best of out his – also young – team.

Van Bommel and John de Jong as players… the latter had his career cut short due to injuries…

I could even argue that Van Bommel did a better job than Ten Hag. But I won’t.

So Van Bommel wanted his team to press higher up the park and have more grit, more fight and more of a killer mentality. Where Cocu tried to adopt a more Dutch football style (and with a lot of Barcelona DNA which never really came of), Van Bommel added some German and Italian elements to this PSV.

Jeroen Zoet is a capable goalie. Not world class, but definitely top for the Eredivisie. Schwaab and Viergever are vulnerable and limited centre backs. But they did show what focus and determination and communication can do. Schwaab is German and brings that solid and focused approach. Viergever is mainly experienced and an obedient soldier. Nothing flash.

But the full backs compensated in spades. These two made the difference. Angelino is quickly becoming an A team player for Spain. While Denzel Dumfries is already consider Oranje’s best right back. Both players have assists in their locker, both players love bombing forward and can create and score goals (Dumfries more so than Angelino, but the Spaniard has a gifted left and a good partnership with Luuk de Jong).

Denzel Dumfries… From Sparta via Heerenveen and PSV to the top?

Van Bommel learned from his father in law Bert van Marwijk and used two holding mids in his 4-2-3-1 set up. Initially, Hendrix and Rosario took the job but throughout the second half of the season, Van Bommel needed more and started to change the team around. Many criticaster will tell you that was the start of PSV undoing but Van Bommel will know better.

Rosario deserves a mention. The kid came from Ajax, via Almere City of AGOVV or something. “Not good enough for Ajax” although it probably was due to his behaviour and his dad’s behaviour.

But Rosario is a rare player. So young, yet so disciplined, so astute tactically and such a wonderful passer of the game. He would have been more effective in the Ajax team, I do think, but he was a joy to watch in his first real season as a starter.

Jorit Hendrix is a solid club player. With some outstanding moments, but something is lacking with him. He’s too average for my liking. He’s like Ten Hag was, as a player. He’s not quick enough, not tough enough, not tall enough, not technical enough, doesn’t score enough, etc etc.

Pablo Rosario

Which is the only true criticism Van Bommel probably listened to. The PSV midfield didn’t score enough goals! Hendrix maybe 1? Rosario literally zero goals in the Eredivisie. Not good enough. Vilhena scored 7, Toornstra scored 8, Schone scored 5… you want your midfielders to score… Criticism that applies to Frenkie de Jong too, but he creates a tremendous number of chances and criticism Jordy Clasie gets as well.

The #10 in PSV is a problem and Mark solved it eventually by putting Luuk de Jong there. That happened in the period of the season where PSV would end up losing the title, but still, it somewhat worked.

Mexican Gutierez wasn’t good enough (Van Bommel: “The pace is still too high for him”) and Pereiro simply doesn’t seem to be consistent enough. A truly gifted lad, but not dominant enough.

With Ihatarren, PSV has a gem for that role. And Mark tried him on the #10 spot and the youngster made his debut at 16 years old. But can’t carry PSV yet.

So with Malen as the #9, Lozano and Bergwijn on the flanks PSV tried it with target man Luuk de Jong as #10. It did work, but simply not good enough.

Luuk de Jong did win the golden boot, shared with Tadic, and had a very strong season but I do think the captain needs to lead the line… The #10 role is hopefully a temporary one.

Cody Gakpo and Ihattaren: PSV’s future?

Ramselaar realised that his game is over at PSV. Along with Adam Maher, another prospect that didn’t really enjoy his time at PSV. Gutierez might well be the next one…

Lozano had a good start this season but somehow the Mexican doesn’t seem to be consistent. He picks up a lot of yellows and reds for petulant behaviour, diving and at times vile tackles. He seems to be playing for Lozano and seems to be wanting to make his mark and leave to a bigger club.

Bergwijn had a break through season. Scoring goals, using his explosive runs, creating goals and he made his way into the Oranje squad.

But the last months, he seemed to slow down. Not enjoying his game, maybe? Or…getting ready for a big move to his old stomping ground at Ajax?

Anyway, PSV deserves credit and Van Bommel deserves credit for the next wave of talented youngsters coming through. In the olden days, Sparta and Feyenoord would be the harbingers, alongside Ajax… Today, it’s PSV and AZ along side the Sons of Gods developing and keeping talent.

Potential new signing from Germany…

Ihatarren, Gakpo, Salinec, Malen, Rosario…all lads who played under Mark in the B-team and are making their way into the first team… Gakpo reminds me of Beckham, Ihatarren of Afellay, Salinec is a young Van Bommel and Malen and Rosaria, well…you know enough after seeing them play this season.

Van Bommel might be on hitlists in Europe already (AC Milan, Bayern) while numerous players will be scouted too (Angelino, Pereiro, Luuk de Jong, Lozano, Zoet)…

So who knows where PSV will be next season, but they definitely contributed to Ajax’ success (and Ten Hag rightfully thanks PSV) and they gave us some exciting new talents to watch!

Next season, we actually might see a new exciting Dutch talent coming in from a Bundesliga club: Arjen Robben… He doesn’t want to go to China, the sand pit or the US. He needs his medical team close and he wants to be close to his family… He also doesn’t want to compete for 6th spot, so it seems he is exclaiming quite loudly “PSV!!” but we’ll need to wait and see…

Oranje’s future: Javairo Dilrosun

It’s Spring in The Netherlands’ football world these days. After a spell of drought in the talent department, we’re witnessing numerous potential world class players coming to the fore. We’ll look at the winger who made a detour to get to the top. Javairo Dilrosun.

And for the first time in eight years, the most dangerous forward with a Dutch passport is not Arjen Robben.

The 20 year old has just finished another practice with his current club Hertha BSC and is panting and struggling for air. “Training is quite tough here. I’m used to a good intense level of training at Man City, but here, it’s even worse. It took a while to get used to, but now, it’s going quite well.” Understatement of the year. Dilrosun has started the season like a rocket!

The youngster learned to play football on the streets of Amsterdam West. And made his move to Man City when he was 15 years old. After 4 years on the City books, he was allowed to make a free exit and the European clubs were queueing up: Ajax of course, Juventus, Leipzig, Valencia, Benfica and Borussia Dortmund all were in the race. But the youngster decided to go to Berlin, where Hertha promised him something crucial: playing time.

When he left Ajax for Man City, the Dilrosun family followed him. Now, he decided to go to Berlin alone. “My little sister and brother need stability in school. And I’m old enough now to live alone. I spend a lot of time with Karim Rekik who is wonderful for me. I don’t speak German yet, but I am learning. Our coach doesn’t speak English so I have to get used to the new language but Karim is my translator and friend and he helps me a lot!”

The youngster might be a bit unsettled off the pitch, still, but on the pitch he seems really at home. “I scored in the pre season games and did well, but the coach didn’t use me in the first Bundesliga match. He felt I need to get stronger. I played with the second team and scored in my first official match. A week later, the coach decided I was good enough for the first team after all, hahaha.”

Against Schalke 04, Javairo started on the bench. And when Rekik is the one who needed to be subbed due to an injury in the first 10 minutes, his buddy Dilrosun came on. And had his first assist. The media and fans in Germany were surprised. “I was not. I worked hard for this. And when you do get the chance, you simply have to take it. That is how it is.”

The Dutchman got his starting berth and would have 3 more assists and score two goals. Even Arjen Robben can’t say that. And end of September, the two faced off against each other. Hertha wins, 2-0, in front of 75,000 people. “I met Arjen before the game, he was always one of my heroes. I’m a leftie too, like him. He wished me the best. I wanted to exchange shirts after the game, but I couldn’t find him anymore, sadly. So I didn’t get the shirt.”

Where Robben took the step-by-step route (Groningen, PSV, Chelsea), young Dilrosun took another avenue. He started at Ajax when he was 7 years old and Ajax Youth Academy director Said Ouaali was his youth coach, for a spell. “Javairo is a really really good player. He is lethal. So fast and but still with tremendous vision. He can go outside, come inside, take on a player with speed or with his trickely and skill. He could play midfield too, but his goal scoring abilities made him a perfect attacker. And, not unimportant: he is a very nice, decent and quiet lad. Very respectful and always with that wide smile on his face.” Dilrosun was part of the team that also brought us Donny van de Beek, Carel Eiting, Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Pablo Rosario. Somehow Ajax never presented the winger with a contract. Dilrosun: “I still wonder why they never signed me up. It took so long and I didn’t hear anything. I became impatient. Ouaali doesn’t want to go into it. He prefers to talk about the future, not the past.

Several clubs in Europe want to follow suit and offer the lad a contract. Man City is the first to fly him in and Patrick Viera, in charge of the City youth academy, shows the Amsterdam born around and explains the big plan they have with him. Dilrosun is convinced. He wants to be part of the City adventure. Master scout Piet de Visser (at 86 still working for Chelsea): “A lot of people think that City and Chelsea just throw money around to gobble up talent, but that is so not true. They really develop plans for all their youngsters and invest with purpose. They train at high level, they play 40 matches per season, get the chance to play in the cup competitions and when they reach a certain age they can train with the first team. People say that Chelsea and City are trading in players for profit but that is false. Whenever a player is unhappy and keen to leave the club, they are never blocked and always allowed to leave. Players like Van Aanholt, Bruma, Rekik and Ake will never be negative about their treatment, as they all landed really nicely, didn’t they?”

That is exactly the story Javairo will tell you. “It was tough at first. You feel alone and you are part of something big, which makes you feel small. I got injured too and that is even harder. But you do grow mentally, as well. The last year, I trained with the first team. Man, you make big jumps forward when you work with the likes of Aguero and Fernandinho and Kompany, I can tell you.”

Dilrosun is there when City breaks every record in England and sees how Pep the miracle worker is the catalyst of all that beauty. “Guardiola is special. Everything he says makes sense. He was always working with you, in my case, explaining how to use my speed and when, how to position myself, my running patterns, my first touch… everything. He is so good and he sees everything. And he taught me how to defend too, hahaha.”

But despite that and despite the fact that Pep wants his future Man City team to be build around a core of homegrown players, today City has 4 wingers who are valued at 230m euros. And these guys will play. Only three youth players were used by Pep last season and these lads played 106 minutes of the 10,260 minutes City players played (Foden, Diaz and Nmecha). Time for Javairo to go elsewhere and get some miles on the clock.

The fringe player of City is now a starter at Hertha. And every 100 minutes of football results in an assist or goal by the winger. And his lungs and legs also make him a weapon to contain the offensive full backs of the opponent. It was Dilrosun who kept Bayern’s Kimmich quiet in the duel vs Bayern.

Dilrosun is ambitious and he has every right to be that. Asked about his plans moving forward, he is clear. “I want to be important for Hertha and keep this up. I want to score 10 times this season and maybe have 10 assists. Obviously, I am ambitious, this is why I left Holland when I was 16 years old. I won’t make any rash statements now as I am prviliged to be here and happy to be here, but of course, eventually, I would love to play at European top level. And win trophies. I will do all I can to play for the likes of Bayern, or Barca, or Man City… That is the ultimate goal. And I want to play for Oranje. That is the Dream. And I want to deserve it too. I will never claim I am ready, that is for the coach to decide.”

A lot of youngsters who left Holland early cop a lot of criticism, as if they went for money. Dilrosun smiles. “I know some players didn’t make it. That is always sad, but I think it worked for me. I mean, I trained under Guardiola. That has made me a much better player, for sure. I am really ambitious and I am very focused. Now I am here and I have to demonstrate that I am not a fluke. And I will.”