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Johan Neeskens

Johannes Jacobus Neeskens (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjoːɦɑ ˈneːskəns]; 15 September 1951 – 6 October 2024) was a Dutch football manager and player. A midfielder, he was an important member of the Netherlands national team that finished as runners-up in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups and is considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time.[3][4][5] In 2004, he was named one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at a FIFA Awards Ceremony,[6] while in 2017 he was included in the FourFourTwo list of the 100 all-time greatest players, at the 64th position.[7]

Johan Neeskens
Neeskens in 1974
Personal information
Full name Johannes Jacobus Neeskens[1]
Date of birth (1951-09-15)15 September 1951
Place of birth Heemstede, Netherlands
Date of death 6 October 2024(2024-10-06) (aged 73)
Place of death Algeria
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1968–1970 RCH 68 (1)
1970–1974 Ajax 124 (33)
1974–1979 Barcelona 140 (35)
1979–1984 New York Cosmos 94 (17)
1984–1985 Groningen 7 (0)
1985 South Florida Sun 1 (1)
1985–1986 Kansas City Comets (indoor) 23 (1)
1986–1987 Löwenbrau (amateurs)
1987–1990 Baar 23 (5)
1990–1991 FC Zug 1 (0)
International career
1970–1981 Netherlands 49 (17)
Managerial career
1991–1993 FC Zug
1993–1995 Stäfa
1995–1996 Singen
1995–2000 Netherlands (assistant manager)
2000–2004 NEC
2005–2006 Australia (assistant manager)
2006–2008 Barcelona (assistant manager)
2008–2009 Netherlands B
2009–2010 Galatasaray (assistant manager)
2011–2012 Mamelodi Sundowns
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Netherlands
FIFA World Cup
Runner-up 1974
Runner-up 1978
UEFA European Championship
Third place 1976
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

After his retirement in 1991, Neeskens was assistant manager to Guus Hiddink with the Dutch and Australian national teams, and to Frank Rijkaard for the Netherlands, Barcelona and Galatasaray. He was also head coach of NEC Nijmegen, the Netherlands B national team,[8] and Mamelodi Sundowns.

Early life

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Neeskens was born in Heemstede in North Holland on 15 September 1951. In his childhood, marked by his parents' divorce, he slept in a corridor due to lack of space.[9]

Neeskens was gifted at sports as a child, including gymnastics and baseball. He represented the Netherlands at a youth European Championship in the latter sport.[9]

Club career

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Neeskens started his career at Racing Club Heemstede in 1968, before being spotted by Rinus Michels and signed for Ajax in 1970.[10] The youngster impressed at right-back, playing in that position for Ajax in the 1971 European Cup Final win against Panathinaikos. During the 1971–72 season, Neeskens took up more of a central midfield role, in support of Johan Cruyff. He adapted well to his new central midfield role because he was a tireless runner, had great technical skills and scored his fair share of goals. Ajax completed a hat-trick of European Cup wins between 1971 and 1973, and Neeskens moved on to FC Barcelona in 1974 to join Cruyff and Michels. There he was nicknamed Johan Segon (Johan the Second).[10]

While his time at Barcelona was relatively unsuccessful for the club (one cup title in 1978, and the 1979 Cup Winners' Cup), he was hugely popular amongst the fans. In 1979 he accepted an offer from the New York Cosmos, spending five years at the club. He earned the equivalent of 600,000 Dutch guilders (roughly $300,000) per year at the club.[11] Having been absent without reason for the third time, he was given a nine-month suspension by manager Hennes Weisweiler in late 1980.[11] The Cosmos released him in October 1984. He also played for FC Groningen during the 1984–85 season. In June 1985, he signed with the South Florida Sun of the United Soccer League.[12] The USL collapsed six games into the 1985 season. On 15 August 1985, he signed with the Kansas City Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League.[13]

Neeskens then played for FC Baar (1988–90) and FC Zug in Switzerland, finally retiring in 1991.[14][15]

International career

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Three of the most notable figures of the Totaalvoetbal school: Johan Neeskens, Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff in 1976
 
Neeskens scoring the opening goal in the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany

Neeskens was capped 49 times for the Netherlands national team, scoring 17 goals. He made his debut against East Germany in 1970, and played a crucial role in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups, playing in central midfield.[9]

In 1974 World Cup qualification, Neeskens scored a hat-trick in a 9–0 win over Norway and also neutralised the attacking threat of Paul Van Himst against Belgium; the latter performance was criticised as a "disgrace" in Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant for having committed 13 fouls.[11] At the tournament in West Germany, he scored two penalties against Bulgaria, and a goal in a 2–0 win over reigning champions Brazil to put the Netherlands into the final.[9] Neeskens scored the opening goal of the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany with a penalty kick after only two minutes of play.[16]

Four years later, Neeskens was a crucial player for the Netherlands (despite a rib injury suffered in the Scotland defeat), in the absence of Cruyff who had retired from international football in 1977. The Netherlands again reached the final, only to lose again to the host nation, this time Argentina, going down 3–1 after extra time (the score at the end of regulation was 1–1).[11]

Neeskens's international appearances were fewer in number after he moved to the New York Cosmos. He declined the key UEFA Euro 1980 qualifier against East Germany in November 1979, citing physical and emotional exhaustion.[11] After his nine-month ban for club absences was lifted, he was reintroduced to the national squad by manager Kees Rijvers in late 1981 for two qualifiers to the 1982 FIFA World Cup. He was cheered in a 3–0 home win over Belgium, but the team lost 2–0 away to France in his final game and missed out on the final tournament.[11]

Coaching career

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Guus Hiddink appointed Neeskens as assistant coach for the Netherlands in 1995.[11] They led the team at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.[17] He remained in the role under successor Frank Rijkaard, who led the national team in its co-hosting of Euro 2000.[18] In 2000 he was appointed coach of Dutch side NEC Nijmegen, leading them to their first European appearance in twenty years in 2003, but was fired in December 2004 with the team in 14th place.[19]

In December 2005, Neeskens was appointed assistant coach of the Australia national team, once again at the request of Guus Hiddink, the Socceroos's manager.[17] He worked alongside Hiddink and Graham Arnold as part of their World Cup 2006 campaign, and was desired by Football Australia to replace Russia-bound Hiddink after the tournament.[20]

After the 2006 World Cup, Neeskens returned to FC Barcelona to replace Henk ten Cate in the club's technical staff, reuniting with Rijkaard.[20] In May 2008, Rijkaard was dismissed with one year remaining of his contract after finishing third in La Liga, with his assistants Neeskens and Eusebio Sacristán leaving with him.[21]

Neeskens joined Frank Rijkaard at Galatasaray as his assistant manager in 2009, and left the club alongside Rijkaard in October 2010.[22] He became the coach of South African club Mamelodi Sundowns in 2011. He was sacked in December 2012 with the team second from bottom after 12 games and having lost the League Cup final to Bloemfontein Celtic.[23]

Style of play

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Speaking of Neeskens, the UEFA website stated that the "steel-hard midfielder was a tireless runner yet also had nice technique and scored goals, helping to set the stage for Cruyff to shine. A box-to-box midfielder with incredible stamina, great mentality, and a powerful shot, Neeskens excelled at pressuring opponents to regain possession. "He was worth two men in midfield," said teammate Sjaak Swart."[24]

Neeskens had begun his career as a right-back for Heemstede, but was moved into midfield by Ajax manager Ștefan Kovács. He played in the Total Football team designed by Kovács's predecessor Rinus Michels, in which players were expected to change position fluidly.[9]

Personal life and death

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Neeskens was married twice: to Marianne Schiphof in 1974 with whom he had a son, and to Swiss-born Marlis von Reding in 1985, with whom he had two daughters and a son.[11][9][25] John Neeskens, a Dutchman who also played in Spain, was incorrectly assumed to be his son.[26]

Neeskens died while in Algeria on 6 October 2024, at the age of 73.[27] He was in the country as part of a KNVB coaching project, and had suffered a heart attack.[11]

Career statistics

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Club

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup League cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
RCH 1968–69[28][29] Eerste Divisie 34 0 1 0 – – – 35 0
1969–70[28][29] Eerste Divisie 34 1 1 0 – – – 35 1
Total 68 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 70 1
Ajax 1970–71[29] Eredivisie 33 1 6 2 – 9[a] 2 – 48 5
1971–72[29] Eredivisie 28 10 5 2 – 8[a] 0 – 41 12
1972–73[29] Eredivisie 32 7 1 0 – 7[a] 0 3[b] 1 43 8
1973–74[29] Eredivisie 31 14 4 0 – 2[a] 0 2[c] 1 37 15
Total 124 32 16 4 0 0 24 2 5 2 169 40
Barcelona 1974–75[30] La Liga 27 7 0 0 – 7[a] 1 – 34 8
1975–76[30] La Liga 32 12 0 0 – 9[d] 6 – 41 18
1976–77[30] La Liga 33 8 0 0 – 8[d] 1 – 41 9
1977–78[30] La Liga 18 2 2 0 – 7[d] 1 – 27 3
1978–79[30] La Liga 30 6 1 0 – 9[e] 0 – 40 6
Total 140 35 3 0 0 0 40 9 0 0 183 44
New York Cosmos 1979[28] NASL 13 4 13 4
1980[28] NASL 17 4 17 4
1981[28] NASL 6 2 6 2
1982[28] NASL 17 0 17 0
1983[28] NASL 23 2 23 2
1984[28] NASL 18 5 18 5
Total 94 17
Groningen 1984–85[29] Eredivisie 7 0 0 0 – 0 0 – 7 0
South Florida Sun 1985[citation needed] USL 1 1 1 1
Kansas City Comets 1985–86[28] MISL 23 1 23 1
Löwenbrau 1986–87
Baar 1987–88[28] 9 1 9 1
1988–89[28] 13 4 13 4
1989–90[28] 1 0 1 0
Total 23 5 23 5
Zug 1990–91[28] 1 0
Career total 450 91 21 4 64 11 5 2 540 108
  1. ^ a b c d e Appearances in UEFA European Cup
  2. ^ One appearance in UEFA Super Cup; two appearance, one goal in Intercontinental Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Super Cup
  4. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Cup
  5. ^ Appearances in UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

International

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Appearances and goals by national team and year[31]
National team Year Apps Goals
Netherlands 1970 2 0
1971 3 0
1972 4 5
1973 5 1
1974 13 9
1975 3 1
1976 4 1
1977 3 0
1978 8 0
1979 2 0
1980 0 0
1981 2 0
Total 49 17

Honours

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Ajax[28][32]

Barcelona[32]

New York Cosmos[32]

Netherlands[32]

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Johannes Jacobus Neeskens". Turkish Football Federation. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  2. ^ "Johan Neeskens". worldfootball.net.
  3. ^ "FC Barcelona: El problema fecal de Núñez que echó a Neeskens del Barça - Marca.com". marca.com. 15 March 2016.
  4. ^ "El Real Madrid ficha al hijo de Neeskens - MARCA.com". marca.com.
  5. ^ "Johan Neeskens – FC Barcelona". FC Barcelona.
  6. ^ "Pele's list of the greatest". BBC Sport. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  7. ^ Yorkhin, Michael (25 July 2017). "FourFourTwo's 100 Greatest Footballers EVER: 60 to 51". FourFourtwo. Archived from the original on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  8. ^ "Neeskens to lead Netherlands B team". UEFA.com. 25 October 2008. Retrieved 24 November 2008.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "Johan Neeskens, midfielder who reached two World Cup finals and helped to create total football". The Daily Telegraph. 8 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  10. ^ a b Chiesa, Carlo F. (22 August 1999). "We are the champions – I 150 fuoriclasse che hanno fatto la storia del calcio" [The 150 champions that made football's history]. Calcio 2000 (in Italian). Action Group S.r.l. p. 123.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Johan Neeskens: keihard en kwetsbaar". Voetbal International (in Dutch). 7 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  12. ^ NEESKENS' GAME-WINNER LIFTS SUN, 3–1 Miami Herald, The (FL) – Sunday, 23 June 1985
  13. ^ Sports People. Nytimes.com (15 August 1985). Retrieved on 29 June 2011.
  14. ^ "Il miglior gregario di sempre: Johan Neeskens, il calciatore totale". zonacesarini.net (in Italian). 8 April 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  15. ^ "Neeskens, le métronome de l'Oranje mécanique". fifa.com (in French). Archived from the original on 12 July 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  16. ^ "Johan Neeskens: Dutch legend who scored in World Cup final dies aged 73". The Times. 7 October 2023. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  17. ^ a b "Neeskens takes up Socceroos role". BBC Sport. 29 December 2005. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  18. ^ "Rijkaard unites the orange factions". The Guardian. 4 June 2000. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  19. ^ "Neeskens sacked by NEC". World Soccer. 13 December 2004. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Socceroos tried hard to keep Neeskens". ABC News. 10 June 2006. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  21. ^ "Rijkaard to leave Barcelona". Reuters. 8 May 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  22. ^ "Rijkaard parts company with Galatasaray". The Independent. 20 October 2010. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  23. ^ "Mosimane replaces Neeskens as coach of Mamelodi Sundowns". BBC Sport. 2 December 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  24. ^ The greatest teams of all time: Ajax 1971–73. UEFA.com. Retrieved on 30 October 2015.
  25. ^ Ferrer, Isabel (7 October 2024). "Muere el exfutbolista Johan Neeskens a los 73 años". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  26. ^ "'Zoon' Johan Neeskens is niet zoon van Neeskens". Elf Voetbal (in Dutch). 29 November 2010. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  27. ^ "Johan Neeskens (15 september 1951 – 6 oktober 2024)". KNVB. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  28. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Johan Neeskens at National-Football-Teams.com
  29. ^ a b c d e f g "Johan Neeskens » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  30. ^ a b c d e Johan Neeskens at BDFutbol
  31. ^ Johan Neeskens – International Appearances. rsssf.org. Retrieved on 29 June 2011.
  32. ^ a b c d e "The Clockwork Oranje's midfield master". FIFA. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  33. ^ "1978 Tournoi de Paris". RSSSF. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  34. ^ "FUWO 1973" (PDF). FCC-Wiki. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  35. ^ "Sport 1974". Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  36. ^ "Sport 1975". BigSoccer. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  37. ^ "Netherlands". worldcupbrazil.net. Archived from the original on 11 February 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  38. ^ "FIFA World Cup All-Star Team – Football world Cup All Star Team". Football.sporting99.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
  39. ^ "Spain – Footballer of the Year". RSSSF.
  40. ^ "Mundo Deportivo La Liga Team of the Year". Hemeroteca - El Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  41. ^ "Mundo Deportivo La Liga Team of the Year". Hemeroteca - El Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  42. ^ "Mundo Deportivo La Liga Team of the Year". Hemeroteca - El Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  43. ^ "Fifa names greatest list". BBC. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 30 April 2007.
  44. ^ "The other two Ballon d'Or Dream Team XIs: Zidane, Cruyff, Iniesta, Di Stefano... but no Casillas". MARCA. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
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