Introduction
Johan Cruyff was a football legend, who gave new heights to the game. He was an artist, who treated the field as a canvas and football as his paintbrush. He is the most celebrated Dutch footballer, whose name is taken with the likes of Pele and Maradona.
He was the most influential figure in football history, whose philosophy has influenced managers and players alike.
He captained his club and country and was one of the greatest players to never win the World Cup.
Early Life
Hendrik Johannes Cruyff was born on 25 April 1947 in East Amsterdam. He grew up near the old Ajax stadium. In the 1950s, at the age of 12, he lost his father and found refuge in street football. The young prodigy made his football debut at the age of 17 years. He scored his first goal and was promoted to the 1st team.
Professional Career
The 1966 season, saw AFC ajax dominating the dutch league ‘Eredivisie’. Cruyff scored 25 goals in 23 games.
Ajax made it to the finals of the European Cup of 1969, where they played against AC Milan and lost 4-1.
June 1971 at Wembley Stadium marked the beginning of the Ajax era. This small club from east Amsterdam appeared in the second final against Panathinaikos of Greece and won the European cup final by 2-0.
Stefan Koracs became the new coach. Another final against Internazionale at Kuip stadium in Rotterdam saw Cruyff scoring 2 goals in the 2nd half to seal the victory. The 2nd European cup win marked the period of phenomenal success and Johan Cruyff was the Jewel in the crown. The 1973 final win against Juventus in Belgrade saw AFC Ajax winning 3 EU Cups in a Row.
After helping Ajax win six league titles, four national cups, and three European Champion Clubs’ Cups, the European player of the year and the best player in the world was transferred to Barcelona in 1973.
By 1973, FC Barcelona had not won the league for 14 years. The 1973-74 season was sensational because of Johan Cruyff. His most memorable performance was against Real Madrid at the Bernabeau, which FCB won 5-0. Captained by Cruyff, Barcelona won the Spanish League championship in 1974 and were the runner-ups in 1976 and 1977.
GREATEST INTERNATIONAL TEAMS (HOLLAND 1974)
The Dutch team of 1974 revolutionized the game by their “total football,” style of play developed by Dutch coach Rinus Michels that emphasized all-around skill, versatility, and creativity. This required Players to be ultra-fit and be able to change their positions quickly.
Cruyff debuted with the Dutch national team when he was 19 and went on to score 33 goals in 48 international matches. Adopting the “Total football” style the 1974 FIFA World Cup was dominated by Cruyff. Michels nurtured many players at AFC Ajax, who became important and influential in the Dutch team like:
- Johnny Rep
- Johan Neeskens
- Vin Serbia
- Arie Haan
- Rudd Crawl
- Johan Cruyff
In the 1974 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, Holland began their qualification by beating Norway and Iceland, home and away, scoring 24 goals in just 4 matches.
The last group match was against Belgium, which offered a stiffer competition. The match ended in a 0-0 draw, resulting in Netherlands qualifying.
In the World Cup, the first match of the Dutch team was against Uruguay. Johnny Rep scored both goals in a 2-0 win. In the next match against Sweden, Johan Cruyff produced a skill move ‘the Cruyff turn’, which mesmerized the audience and viewers. The match ended as a goalless draw. The following match against Bulgaria witnessed a 4-1 win for Holland, which helped them to progress to the next round.
In the second round, Holland was grouped with Argentina, East Germany and Brazil. In the first match, against Argentina, the dutch team put up a stylish performance. Cruyff scored his 1st goal of the tournament, which resulted in a 4-0 victory. The next match against East Germany ended up in a 2-0 victory. The Semi-Final of the World Cup against Brazil was a tough fixture as Brazil were phenomenal at the game and put up stiff competition. Holland had a great achievement as they were able to secure a 2-0 win due to Cruyff’s 65th minute goal and advance to the World Cup finals for the first time, where they faced West Germany.
The 1974 World Cup final was a much-awaited fixture. The Netherlands were a prolific team with talented players like Johan Cryuff. In the finals, the host, West Germany conceded an early goal, due to a penalty, which was brilliantly converted to a goal by Nesskens. But the Germans were able to equalize soon through a goal scored in a penalty by Paul Brietner and Gerd Muller provided the winner, which saw the hosts, West Germany won the finals 2-1 and the Netherlands were the runner-ups.
The Captain of the West German team, Franz Beckenbauer paid his tribute to Johan Cruyff after receiving the World Cup trophy by saying, “He was the better player, but I won the World Cup.”
The Dutch team of 1974 became an inspiration for generations that followed. In 1974, Johan Cruyff was named the European player of the year for a third time.
The 1974 FIFA World Cup brought an end to Cruyff’s international career, due to disagreements with the Dutch FA.
In club football, after scoring 48 goals in 143 appearances for Barcelona, Cruyff retired from football for a short time.
After a brief period in the United States with LA Aztecs and the Washington Diplomats, Cruyff returned to play for AFC Ajax. He returned to Ajax in 1981, but two years later he joined rival team Feyenoord after a contract dispute. There he won his ninth Dutch championship and fifth national cup. After retiring as a player in 1984, Cruyff coached both Ajax (1987) and Barcelona (1989). In 1992 he guided Barcelona to both the European Champion Clubs’ Cup and the UEFA Super Cup.
Cruyff was also involved in philanthropy. He founded a nonprofit organization to encourage children to participate in sports and the Johan Cruyff Institute, which provides education in sports management.
In October 2015 he was diagnosed with lung cancer. On the morning of 24 March 2016, in a clinic in Barcelona, Cruyff died at the age of 68. He was cremated in Barcelona within 24 hours following his death. A private ceremony was held, attended only by his wife (Danny), children (Chantal, Susila, and Jordi), and grandchildren.
Football lost a man who did more to make the beautiful game beautiful than anyone in history.
— BBC broadcaster and former England striker Gary Lineker, regarded Cruyff as Europe’s -`best-ever player.
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