Football

How Ronald Koeman revitalised the fortunes of the Dutch national team


England will be looking to build on last summer’s World Cup escapades by lifting the inaugural Nations League title but standing in their way is another country who have undergone an impressive transformation of their own in recent times.

Dutch football was on its knees following successive qualification failures – first for an expanded 24-team Euro 2016 and then the World Cup in 2018 – but similarly to England in Russia, the current team’s performances and accompanying positive results, has led to a renewed surge in support.

Key to the Netherlands’ improvement over the past 15-months has been the management of Ronald Koeman, who has steadied the ship following the doomed reigns of Guus Hiddink, Danny Blind and Dick Advocaat which followed Louis Van Gaal’s hugely successful stint between 2012-14.

Koeman tasted a 1-0 defeat to England in his first match in charge last March and while Southgate’s side are slight favourites to emerge victorious in the Nations League semi-final, the Dutch have improved considerably since that meeting.

Here is how Koeman has revitalised his country’s footballing fortunes.

Appointing Virgil Van Dijk captain

Virgil Van Dijk is the undisputed leader of the Dutch national team (Picture: Getty)

In an interview with the Telegraph published in April, Fons Groenendijk, a former manager of Willem II where Virgil Van Dijk started his career, admitted that nobody in Holland had envisioned the Liverpool defender going on to have the career he has.

‘I have to admit that Virgil has stunned everyone,’ he said. ‘Not just the people at Willem II. Not just the people at Groningen. Every big club in Holland. He went under the radar of them all. None of them saw his potential.’

Van Dijk will be 29 by the conclusion of Euro 2020 and should the Dutch make it to the finals, it will represent his international tournament debut. Left out of the squad for the 2014 World Cup by Louis Van Gaal, Van Dijk didn’t even make his debut until October 2015 when he was 24 and playing in the Premier League with Southampton.

That it took so long for the Dutch to recognise Van Dijk’s talents is bizarre given the country’s record for developing youth talent, but one man who has long been an admirer of his ability is Koeman, who signed him for Southampton and made him captain of the side before his first game in charge against England.

Liverpool’s inspirational leader at the back has proven his credentials since Koeman handed him the armband, assisting the development of De Ligt alongside him in defence, while also leading from the front at the other end with four goals in ten appearances.

Ushering in a new generation

Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder retired from international duty in 2017 (Picture: Getty)

During the Netherlands’ unceremonious dismantling of the reigning champions, Spain in the nations’ opening World Cup 2014 match, Arjen Robben and Robin Van Persie ran riot up front with Wesley Sneijder pulling the strings behind them.

All three were 30 when the tournament kicked off but the lack of talent coming through the ranks meant that they remained integral players longer than perhaps they should. Van Persie retired after the Dutch’s failure to reach Euro 2016, while Sneijder and Robben followed suit after they fell short for the World Cup.

Over the past couple of years, though, Dutch football’s famed talent factory has started to churn once more. Ajax’s run to the 2017 Europa League final and to the Champions League semi’s this year saw a clutch of young stars come to the fore, notably Matthijs De Ligt, Frenkie De Jong and Donny Van De Beek.

Considering how successful Ajax have been this season, it is a testament to PSV’s quality that the Eredivisie title race went right down to the final day of the season and Philipp Cocu’s side is also blessed with talented homegrown stars such as Steven Bergwijn – linked with a summer move to Spurs – and Denzel Dumfries.

With Memphis Depay finally flourishing on a consistent basis since moving from Manchester United to Lyon, the old guard has at long last, started to be adequately replaced.

Assembling a settled team

Although Koeman has used 36 players during his time in charge, he has also developed a nucleus of players around whom he has depended upon. Of his dozen matches, there are nine players who have played in nine or more games.

De Ligt and Memphis are the only two to have played in every single match under Koeman, but beyond them are a clutch of players who have featured prominently including Quincy Promes (11 games), Van Dijk (10), Georginio Wijnaldum (10), Daley Blind (10), Jasper Cillessen (10), Ryan Babel (10) and Marten De Roon (nine).

Frenkie De Jong, who had to wait a little longer to make his mark, has featured in seven of the Netherlands’ previous eight fixtures, starting six of them. While Koeman has been keen to assess the talent pool available to him, he has a largely settled starting XI.

Matthijs De Ligt and Memphis Depay are the only players to have played in all 12 of Ronald Koeman’s matches in charge of the Netherlands (Picture: Getty)

Arguably the only two starting positions that remain up for grabs in Koeman’s side are on the right flank, both in defence and in midfield. Atalanta’s Hans Hateboer and Dumfries are in competition at right-back, with the highly-rated Bergwijn and Sevilla’s Quincy Promes offering options on the right wing.

Koeman deserves credit for crafting an exceptional balance to the side, particularly in midfield where the combative talents of De Roon, the artistry and playmaking skills of De Jong and the box-to-box energy of Wijnaldum, have combined to form an exceptionally well-rounded unit. The partnership of Memphis and the revitalised Babel up front, has also caught the eye.

His task has also been aided by the existence of strong club relationships within the team, such as the all-Ajax (for now) triumvirate of De Ligt, Blind and De Jong, the presence of two Liverpool players between defence and midfield of Van Dijk and Wijnaldum and an all-PSV right flank of Dumfries and Bergwijn, when selected.

Similarly to Gareth Southgate with England, Koeman has relied on players adaptable enough to perform effectively in different systems with the Dutch frequently alternating between 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 systems. The versatility of Blind in defence and Babel in attack, has enabled them to do so without causing undue disruption.

Utilising Ajax’s success

Matthijs De Ligt and Frenkie De Jong are regarded as two of the best up-and-coming prospects in world football (Picture: Getty)

Supporters of PSV and Feyenoord might disagree, but Ajax’s swaggering run to the Champions League semi-final was one of the highlights of the season with Erik Ten Hag’s youthful side gaining plaudits for the manner in which they dismantled European heavyweights Juventus and Real Madrid.

Although Ajax’s team, like virtually every other big club in Europe, is drawn from nations around the globe from Serbia to Cameroon to Brazil, there has been a Dutch core running through the heart of it with De Ligt, Blind, De Jong, Van De Beek and Joel Veltman, amongst others, playing their part.

Ten Hag has also restored Ajax’s playing style to their traditions formed during the late Johan Cruyff’s days as a player when Rinus Michels was in charge, namely playing attractive, attacking football designed to win but also to entertain.

Previously when Ajax have been strong so too has the national team. The greatest Dutch team of all-time in 1974 contained renowned Ajax stars such as Ruud Krol, Arie Haan and Johnny Rep as well as Cruyff who had by then joined Barcelona.

The side that reached the semi-finals of the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 on home soil, meanwhile, was predominantly made up of those who had lifted the Champions League with Ajax in 1995 such as Edwin Van Der Sar, the De Boer brothers, Edgard Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Patrick Kluivert.

That Ajax’s class of 2019 have performed so strongly in Europe can only bode well for Oranje.





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