REMEMBERING CRUYFF

This month marks seven years since Dutch footballing icon Johan Cruyff sadly passed aged 68. The pioneer of the ‘Cruyff Turn’ and the captain of his country at the final of the 1974 World Cup, has forever left his mark on football.

Having been to both the Nou Camp and the Johan Cruyff Arena I can say that Johan Cruyff is someone who I have been so mesmerised by ever since I was younger. Despite never getting to see him play, I have spent years refining my knowledge and understanding of not only Johan Cruyff the player but also Johan Cruyff the person. What an incredible player and person he was.

Cruyff was Eredivisie Champion a record nine times throughout his career and having played just twelve seasons in his home country, he made his debut aged just 17 becoming the first of many exceptional academy talents produced in Amsterdam over the years. The soon-to-be legend marked his Ajax debut with a goal in 1964, a glimpse of what was to come further down the line for the young prodigy.

Cruyff soon became the best player in the league by far, winning Ajax six consecutive league titles between 1965 and 1973, with his ability being recognised by all after winning two Ballon D’or Trophies. Johan had added to his cabinet during his time at his boyhood club, with a further four Dutch cups; one UEFA Supercup; one Intercontinental Cup and three consecutive European Cups (Champions League titles).

However, all was not easy for Cruyff, after failing to qualify for the 1972 European Championships, pressure was mounted upon the 25 year old at the time. Dutch manager Frantisek Fadrhonc decided to hand the captaincy of the National team to Cruyff, which was almost as guaranteed as anything has ever been, to pay off. The greatest Dutch player of all time, fired in seven goals throughout the World Cup qualifiers and allowed The Netherlands to qualify for their first Tournament since 1938, 9 years before Cruyff himself was born.

Prior to the World Cup, after nine years and many trophies, the ‘flying dutchman’ made the switch to Catalan club FC Barcelona for a record breaking fee of £922,000. The iconic ‘shadow striker’ managed to secure Barcelona their first La Liga Title in 14 years and converted 16 goals whilst doing so becoming the second highest scorer for Barca in the 1973/74 campaign.

After having such a successful first season, he was adored instantaneously by the fans. However, the footballing genius was further adored by the fans for the way he immersed himself in the culture of the city itself off of the pitch. Naming his son a famous Catalan name, Jordi, something which Catalonians are eternally grateful for.

However, he was also adored by his fellow players and perhaps most importantly to his career, Rinus Michels who managed both Ajax, Barcelona and the national side in which Cruyff was so important.

Michels was appointed as the manager of The Netherlands National team after they had qualified for the biggest tournament in 34 years. Most of the national team during this time had impressive trophy cabinets in their native country, having played alongside Johan during his time at Ajax where they were so successful.

The Netherlands has an extremely surprising and successful 1974 World Cup where they had managed to reach the final and go one goal ahead jut two minutes into the game against West Germany. The West Germans equalised after 25 minutes and then scored just before half time through another football legend and German Icon of the game, Gerd Muller. The Netherlands were unable to find a reply and lost the final 2-1, despite beating all odds of getting there after such a long absence from the competition.

On a personal note, Johan Cruyff had a superb tournament where he notched up three assist and three goals across the tournament, taking the golden ball home and further putting his name on the map as the best player in world football in 1974 by adding his third Ballon D’or.

Cruyff went on to play in Spain for five years, making 180 appearances for FC Barcelona, registering an incredible 83 assists and 60 goals during that time.

Then Cruyff briefly retired, but lost a lot of money in financial investment scamming schemes such as pig farms, and played for the Los Angeles Aztecs, Washington Diplomats and Levante before returning to Ajax in 1981.

Once he returned home, he managed to win two titles in two years back with Ajax but after a dispute with the board with regards to him not being offered a new contract, he moved to fierce rivals Feyenoord and secured the league title in his only season there alongside Dutch starlet Ruud Gullit.

Cruyff then retired and stepped back from the game itself for two years, before trying his hand on the side-lines as a manager. He began with the club in his heart and where he had a fruitful playing career, Ajax. In his three-year tenure at Ajax, it was very clear to see he was elite at both the playing and management side of the game, winning two Dutch cups in his time there.

Then after having been a success at Ajax, Cruyff made the poetic return to Spain where he took over as the manager of Barcelona, and with his fast, free-flowing attacking play style managed to continue his success for the Catalan giants. He was in charge for 8 years at Barcelona, where he left as a very successful manager having won the league four times; the European Cup and UEFA Super Cup; the Spanish Cup and three Spanish Super Cups.