Ask a manager about the value of camaraderie and you could be there for a while. Ronald Koeman is no different, his situation unique to most, is common within the Netherlands, and even then it's different. No better demonstration this season and explicitly in Feyenoord's recent game against FC Twente.
It's strange, in a sort of good way, how a song can remind you of someone, their image instantly etched into your mind."The Saints Are Coming" (Green Day/U2 version), is one example, the goal music atDe Grolsch Veste – home of FC Twente – now forever associated with Luuk de Jong, largely responsible for many of its airing last season, now plying his trade in Germany he's hoping for a similar amount of encore performances.
There was one minute left in extra time and Ronald Koeman started to prepare for the inevitable. He found what he was looking for, a notepad and pen, after collecting his thoughts he jotted down numbers one through five. Next to number one ‘Lex' was written, followed by a space, then letters I and M, before he could finish the surname, a loud roar erupted, looking up, Koeman saw Lex Immers – the very person that was going to take the penalty – wheel away in celebration, Feyenoord left it very late.
After trawling out for a closer inspection, what he saw left a concerned expression on his face, after taking it all in he slowly walked back inside fearing the worst. Constantly preying on his mind, they had to somehow leave with all three points, they didn't.
Hearing the full-time whistle Samuel Eto'o knew where to head. Anzhi just beaten AZ 5-0 in
Alkmaar, but there was no mood to celebrate, instead he had to see him up close and offer a few
words to a talent without limitations that left a huge impression.
Most managers in the Eredivisie, adhering to the unwritten code, would stop short of describing
a player as 'world class' or remotely anywhere near the reason being as it would be interpreted as
overhyping a talent nowhere near the finished article.
Jim Collins, in "Good to Great", wrote the secret of long-term corporate success lies in
cultivating a distinctive set of values. For all the talk of diversity and globalisation, this
usually means promoting from within and putting down deep local roots.
Morten Olsen, national team coach of Denmark, can be forgiven if he decides to start shuttling between Copenhagen to Amsterdam on a regular basis. He would though have a very good reason. Ajax, where he won the double in his only full season before leaving unceremoniously, is again preying on his mind.
The Noordwijk Experiment Ajax and the 3-4-3 is a post from: Just Football
by Mohamed Moallim
The last time Ajax regularly played three at the back, Sandra Bullock was one
of the hottest young actresses in Hollywood with a bright future ahead, and the same could be said
for Ajax who dined at the top of Europe's elite table.
By Babette van Haaren, writing from Holland. We started our tribute to
Edwin with Mohamed Moallim's biographical piece on VdS and now we finish with a wonderful piece
from Babette, one of the most passionate and knowledgeable Ajax fans around...
Despite Edwin van der Sar never won a European Championship or World Cup with Holland, he enjoys
the status of a secular saint in his country.
Edwin Van der Sar's heroic career has ended and we're proud to have two of the best experts
on Dutch football and Ajax, Mohamed Moallim and Babette van
Haaren, each pay their respect to one of Holland's greats. We start with the
biography-esque piece from Mohamed (Twitter / Personal Blog), who is a British freelance
journalist currently writing for publications such as World Football Columns and FourFourTwo
amongst many others on the brilliant world of Dutch football.
Usually when Liverpool signs a player, I've at least a passing familiarity with the player.
Sometimes, it's someone I've watched often – like Joe Allen, Andy Carroll, Stewart Downing,
Charlie Adam, etc. You know, players bought from other Premiership sides. Less often, it's someone
I've seen on a few occasions and can supplement with statistics and those damned YouTube videos,
like Fabio Borini.
(parts of this piece are sourced from Mohamed Moallim, whom we thank...)
In Oranje's long and exciting history there was always the role of "lone gunslinger". The killer
in the box. The goal-machine... Johnny Rep, Cor van der Gijp, Kees Kist, Wiem Kieft, Patrick
Kluivert, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Peter Houtman, Ruud [read more]
