|
Hiddink utilizing past Dutch greats
Neeskens, Rijkaard, Koemen join squad after Euro '96
Posted: Wednesday June 24, 1998 10:19 AM
Special from L'Equipe, the French sports daily
Roquebrune Cap Martin, France
(L'Equipe) -- Only time will tell whether Guus Hiddink is a genius or not,
whether after having modified the Netherlands
' style of play, using more assistant coaches was a good idea.
Whatever the outcome, having former national team players Johann Neeskens,
Frank Rijkaard and Ronald Koeman with him has certainly made the public
relations part of his job easier.
But the idea of "putting together more consequent technical coaching
staffs, like what is done in the United
States," as Hiddink said, didn't just surface one day. The failure at
the 1996 European Championships made him realize that in a big competition,
one man couldn't do everything by himself. So he asked Johan Neeskens, in
the summer of 1996, Ronald Koeman, in December of 1997, and Frank Rijkaard,
in the spring of 1998, to give him a hand, bring him the "experience" and
"background" of people who've won it all.
And it's true that these three former players, who played in 200 matches
for the Netherlands altogether, won everything there was to win except for
the World Cup -- Neeskens played in the 1974 and 1978 finals.
They say they work together, in perfect harmony, but they all bring their
own personality and perception of things to the players. Koeman thinks of
"indicating them certain little details they have to face, little things
that help them better prepare for a match and that become decisive when the
pressure builds up." Neeskens is there to "help them mentally to apprehend
an important match, to understand the way to better utilize their
qualities. Rijkaard relies on his "good understanding of the way they
think."
| |
Hiddink (right) made the decision to add the coaches after a disappointing finish in Euro '96 (AP) |
To Hiddink, it's how complementary they are that makes them important and
useful. "I chose the three of them because I wanted Neeskens to communicate
his passion to the players, Koeman to allow them to get a feel of the game,
and Rijkaard, thanks to his people skills, to unite them, make them stick
together," he said.
The president of the Netherlands' soccer federation, Jeu Sprengers, didn't
hide the fact that Rijkaard's presence, which was justified by his
personality and his past as a player, was also supposed to help Hiddink
deal with the players from Surinam. When Edgar Davids was throw off the
team, during the 1996 European Championships, it created a problem. Patrick
Kluivert's expulsion in the first match of the World, Clarence Seedorf's
absence in the second one, Davids playing instead, these are not easy
situations for Rijkaard to handle. "When I arrived, things were settled.
There is a good atmosphere, the team is fine. I use my experience and if at
times I'm close to Kluivert, I treat al the players the same, I yell at
everyone, without second thoughts, when I need to. It's necessary in this
line of work," he explained.
They're on the other side now, coaching guys they played with not so long
ago or who could be their sons, which isn't always easy. "It all happened
naturally," Neeskens said. "These are intelligent, talented players. Today,
players are more mature than they were when I played. At 21, they've
already played in European Championships matches, and playing all over
Europe enriched them. We don't have much to teach them."
Koeman will help Louis Van Gaal in Barcelona next season, Rijkaard will
continue this "exciting experience," just like Neeskens. With or without
Hiddink? Even though Sprengers said it was too early to talk about it, he
admitted that things "have gotten much better and are really good now" with
Johan Cruyff. And Ruud Gullit is free too. Time will tell.
Copyright 1998, L'Equipe
|
