How have the Netherlands never won the FIFA World Cup? ‘Total Football’, with Rinus Michels as its conductor and Johan Cruyff playing concertmaster, had their name all but etched on the trophy in 1974, only to return home as runners-up. Invariably the same side, albeit minus Cruyff, seized the same prize four years later. Ronald Koeman, Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and the continental conquerors of ’88 fell to fierce rivals West Germany in an epic Round-of-16 clash at Italia ’90. Dennis Bergkamp and Co produced magic aplenty before losing to Brazil on penalties in the France ’98 semi-finals. Then came the era of Wesley Sneijder, Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie, who pocketed silver in South Africa and bronze in Brazil. The aforementioned question is one that perplexes Louis van Gaal. It’s one he and his band of soldiers are determined to make extinct. FIFA+ spotlights five of the men who could help the Netherlands do so in Qatar.
Virgil van Dijk
Position: Centre-back Age: 31
“Virgil van Dijk is the best centre-back on the planet right now – easy,” stated Rio Ferdinand earlier this year. “I’d go further,” interrupted Michael Owen. “I think he’s the best centre-half of all time.” Positional GOAT contenders such as Bobby Moore, Franz Beckenbauer, Daniel Passarella, Franco Baresi, Marcel Desailly and Fabio Cannavaro all thrived in the World Cup. At the relatively old age of 31, Van Dijk, who has never even played in a UEFA EURO, will finally get his chance. The Breda boulder has been central to the re-emergence the Netherlands with his impregnability, leadership and threat from set-pieces. Having won everything there is to win at club level with Liverpool, he now desperate to guide his country to the trophy that has somehow eluded some exceptional generations. Van Dijk finished runner-up for The Best FIFA Men’s Player for 2019, but returned home with the plaudits of victor Lionel Messi, who labelled him “complete and magnificent”. Erling Haaland recently identified VVD as the toughest opponent he has ever competed against, saying: “He’s fast, strong and f*cking smart.”
Denzel Dumfries
Position: Right-wingback Age: 26
A Dutch kid playing international football before he was on the books of a pro football club sounds like something from a Hollywood script, right? A kid named after actor Denzel Washington made it reality. Dumfries made two appearances for Aruba as a 17-year-old in 2014, scoring a spectacular long-ranger against Guam. The uber-confident player swiftly informed the ABC Island nation he would not represent them in a competitive fixture, however, as he was certain he would one day wear orange in a World Cup. Months later he was watching a giant screen in an Amsterdam square as Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie – along with current internationals Daley Blind and Giorginio Wijnaldum – helped write Netherlands’ earth-shaking 5-1 victory over Spain at Brazil 2014. Now Dumfries is set to realise his own wild dream. The Rotterdammer’s maiden international expedition piqued the attention of Sparta Rotterdam, who whisked him from non-league Barendrecht. Eight years on and Dumfires can lay claim to having been one of the stars of UEFA EURO 2022, excelling for PSV and current club Inter Milan, interesting Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Real Madrid, and owning 35 Netherlands caps. “I’ve never seen a player with such high energy,” said former Oranje right-back Mario Melchiot. “He has a real spring on him, a winning mentality, he’s physical, and he’s great going forward.”
Frenkie de Jong
Position: Midfielder Age: 25
“I just love playing football, feeling the ball at my feet,” said De Jong. “All my life it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.” So much so that on his last appearance for Ajax, with his side 4-1 up, he begged the referee to “please add extra time - I want to play as long as possible.” De Jong is now set to perform on the biggest stage of all. A ball-retention and pass god, the Gorinchem native would be a perfect fit for the Dutch ‘Total Football’ of the 1970s or the Spanish tika-taka of in and around South Africa 2010, while he’s been likened to Franz Beckenbauer and his now-coach at Barcelona. “With his skill, vision and passing he could be a new Xavi,” said Marc Overmars. Xavi himself recently showered his No21 in praise: “He’s spectacular with the ball at his feet. He’s strong, keeps possession, has incredible vision and can play the killer pass and split defences.” The Willem II academy graduate has won 44 Netherlands caps, though he hasn’t scored in his last 34 internationals. Whether he can ripple Qatari nets is in question, but he seems destined to rewrite some World Cup passing statistics.
Cody Gakpo
Position: Forward Age: 23
You'd be stretched to find a player with more transfer rumours swirling around their name than Cody Gakpo at the moment, and with good reason.
The attacker - comfortable through the centre or on the wing - has steadily built his reputation at PSV Eindhoven to the point where he could be cherry picking his next club at will, with clubs such as Manchester United reportedly queuing up for his signature.
Nine goals and 12 assists in 14 Eredivisie appearances this season is not easily overlooked, compounding an influential past few years in which he has won the Dutch Cup and the Dutch Footballer of the Year award.
His next challenge is to carry that influence into Qatar 2022, but he is aware that the experience will be a learning curve: "I know it [the World Cup] is something special. It's the highest stage you can play on and I'm really curious about how it will make me feel. I want to be even more consistent and score even more. I think I can also learn a lot in terms of my head power, my left leg and choosing my position," he told journalists.
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal is an outspoken fan of Gakpo: “I think Gakpo is a great talent. He scores easily. He has now also shown that in the Dutch national team. He is also a young player, so he still has a lot of experience to gain.”
With just nine senior international appearances to his name, however, he is what you could call inexperienced on the world stage. This could mean he is not a guaranteed starter when Netherlands begin their World Cup quest against Senegal on 21 November but, however Gakpo does get his chance, his explosive performance is sure to be hard to miss.
Memphis Depay
Position: Forward Age: 28
In their last 20 internationals Mo Salah has scored six goals, Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe 12 each, Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi 15 apiece, Harry Kane 16 and Erling Haaland 20. Depay has netted 21. He is, to the Oranje, as fundamental as oranges are to the Oranjebitter. Depay’s cocktail of unpredictable skills, defence-fracturing through-balls and lethal finishes prompted current Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal to label him “one of the most difficult players to stop in the world”, Bastian Schweinsteiger to laud him as an ”unbelievable talent” and Georginio Wijnaldum to tell FIFA that “the team is doing so well because of Memphis. He’s a striker now but he does much more than score goals – he makes things happen, he gets assists.” Depay went to Brazil 2014 as a 20-year-old, setting up Robin van Persie’s equaliser and scoring the winner in a 3-2 win over Australia on his competition debut, consequently becoming the youngest Dutchman to net a World Cup goal. He also rose from the bench to seal a 2-0 victory over Chile en route to going home with a bronze medal. The Netherlands’ chances of a first gold in Qatar will be indebted to a Barcelona player who is closing in on Van Persie’s national goal record of 50.
Kylian Mbappe netted a sublime Champions League hat-trick for Paris St-Germain to upstage Barcelona's Lionel Messi on his own turf and draw comparisons with Brazilian Ronaldo.
At the age of 22, Mbappe has already won the World Cup with France and his latest showing signalled his capabilities of being the heir to Messi's throne.
A display of ice-cold finishing allowed PSG to take a commanding 4-1 lead into the last-16 second leg at Parc des Princes on 10 March.
"It is clear that he is a great footballer, today he has shown it with this hat-trick," said PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino. "The great players are creating a path and these three goals put him in the media spotlight.
"We had no doubts and we are happy for him, it's normal, there are going to be rumours [about him leaving]. What is clear is that he is happy in Paris and we all want to find the best way."
'The alpha dog in football'
Mbappe had netted just one goal in nine previous knockout games in the competition with PSG but turned that statistic on its head in ruthless fashion.
The night started with Messi opening the scoring from the penalty spot but he was left watching as his superiority slipped away.
Mbappe, whose contract with PSG ends in 2022, danced past fellow Frenchman Clement Lenglet to smash in the equaliser, stroked home from 10 yards for the second and curled in a delightful third.
"You say he's the future, but he is now," former England midfielder Owen Hargreaves said on BT Sport. "PSG have to lock him down real quick. Everyone will find enough money for Mbappe.
"It was a performance like the old Brazilian Ronaldo. You're not signing anyone other than Mbappe at the moment. He ripped the life out of every Barca player. In that form at 22 with a year left on his contract, he is an absolute diamond."
And the numbers make pleasant reading too.
Mbappe became the first player in Champions League history to score a hat-trick against Barcelona in the knockout stages.
He is only the third player to score a Champions League hat-trick against Barcelona, after Faustino Asprilla for Newcastle and Andriy Shevchenko for Dynamo Kiev (both in 1997).
He has now scored 24 Champions League goals. Only Messi, with 25, has scored more before his 23rd birthday.
Of players with 20 or more Champions League goals, Mbappe has netted the highest proportion in away matches (71% - 17/24).
Ex-England midfielder Joe Cole added: "Mbappe is the best player in the world at the moment. His link-up play, his work-rate off the ball - he is the alpha dog in football.
"If you want to build a team you go and get Mbappe. He is the most influential player on the planet. How good can he become? At 22 you compare his stats to the other greats and he has got 10 or 15 years ahead of him.
"Any of the big clubs, he is my number one target."
Antoine Griezmann was left disappointed at full-time but gave his French compatriot the biggest compliment by saying: "Kylian Mbappe had a great night. PSG has a great star for the future, who will be at the level of Leo Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo."
Barcelona 'a shadow of its former self'
The future looks bright for Mbappe and PSG, but Messi and Barcelona are in a dark period.
The Argentine is 33 and his future at the club is far from certain having requested a transfer last summer and coming to the end of his current deal this season.
Manager Ronald Koeman has tried to mend an ageing squad but they look far from their imperious best with the league title looking lost too, eight points adrift of leaders Atletico Madrid who have a game in hand.
The defeat against PSG meant they lost back-to-back home games in the European Cup for the first time in their illustrious history, while they were also defeated by a margin of three or more goals for only the sixth time in the competition.
"We have to admit that they have been superior," said Koeman. "They have shown that they have a more complete team than us. We have to accept it, improve things."
Hargreaves said: "Barca had no power, no togetherness. Messi looks disinterested, it's hard to criticise him but tonight he didn't look emotionally invested in the game.
"You'd have to do your due diligence before signing Messi, whether he is carrying an injury or not feeling well. The 34-year-old Messi, if he plays like that, it will be a gamble."
Barca can look to 2016-17 when they turned around a 4-0 first-leg deficit to stun PSG 6-1 in the second leg, but another turnaround looks almost impossible with no Neymar or Luis Suarez at their disposal any more.
Cole added: "It is not his [Koeman's] fault, I don't think it's his fault at all. It's a thankless task. That was the best team in the world for a long time and it is now a shadow of its former self."
BBC
PARIS, August 8: As Lionel Messi prepared to say farewell to Barcelona in a club press conference on Sunday, French fans and media alike were salivating over the impact the superstar's mooted arrival at Paris Saint-Germain would have on the club and the French league.
The 34-year-old will take questions from the press at noon (1000 GMT) on Sunday, Barcelona said in a statement. They will be his first public comments since his departure was announced.
Meanwhile PSG appeared to be closing in on a deal for the Argentinian superstar with Nasser al-Khelaifi, the president of the Qatar-owned club, and sporting director Leonardo both missing the team's 2-1 win at Troyes in their Ligue 1 season-opener on Saturday.
"There have been lots of rumours. Lots of things are being said," said PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino.
"I just hope we will be strong enough to try to win every competition we are involved in."
Messi had been expected to stay in Barcelona on a much reduced salary but president Joan Laporta said on Friday he was not prepared "to put the club at risk" by renewing Messi's contract, as they face up to huge financial problems.
Many in Catalonia are struggling to accept the departure of the 34-year-old who has been with the club since he signed a contract on a napkin at the age of 13.
"Still hard to understand that you will not play for @FCBarcelona anymore," tweeted coach Ronald Koeman, the man whose goal won Barca their first European Cup in 1992.
"Thanks for everything you have done for our club Leo. I really enjoyed the full season we worked together. I am impressed with your work ethic and desire to win."
Former teammate Cesc Fabregas, who first played against the 13-year-old Messi, also posted a warm tribute.
"You leave as the best player of all time. It will never be the same to see Barca without you. Thank you, thank you and thank you for everything you have given," he tweeted.
With Manchester City coach and former Messi mentor, Pep Guardiola, saying the Premier League champions are not in the market, that left Qatari-backed PSG as the only suitors with deep enough pockets -- in Spain he was reportedly earning over 70 million euros ($82.3m) a year net.
Barcelona-based daily Sport insisted on Saturday that "for the moment, Messi has no offer from any club."
Yet Laporta indicated on Friday that Messi "has other offers and there is a time limit because La Liga starts soon and he needs time to assess his other options."
Messi has lifted the Champions League four times with Barcelona and PSG are desperate for the final piece to take them to that honour.
- 'Marriage of love and reason' -
Former Barcelona teammate, Brazilian Neymar, has made no secret of his desire for a reunion.
He would also team up in attack with his Argentina colleague Angel di Maria as well as Kylian Mbappe, the 22-year-old tipped to succeed Messi as the leading player on the planet.
An added attraction could be Pochettino, who like Messi started his career at Newell's Old Boys in Rosario, Argentina.
"Messi to Paris, it's yes," read a headline in Le Parisien which described the sealing of a "marriage of love and reason".
Sports daily L'Equipe reported Messi will receive a three-year "record contract" with various reports saying he stands to earn 35 million euros a season -- but it appears nothing has been signed.
Other French clubs welcomed the idea of Messi lighting up Ligue 1.
"For me he is the best player in the world. If he comes to Ligue 1 anyone who likes football is going to enjoy it," said the Lyon coach, Peter Bosz.
Le Parisien reported that Messi's father and representative Jorge had reached out to PSG after it became clear the player would not be staying in Catalonia.
- Numbers point to exit -
Messi originally reached agreement with Barcelona to sign a five-year contract worth 50 percent less per year.
But La Liga's financial fair play rules, which are expected to reduce the amount Barca can spend on salaries this season by some 200 million euros ($235 million), led Laporta to conclude they were unable to complete the deal.
"We could not accommodate Messi's contract," said Laporta, who was re-elected as club president in March and said Friday he would not "mortgage" the club for anybody.
"The situation we have inherited is abominable and the sports salary bill represents 110 per cent of the club's income.
"La Liga's rules set limitations and we have no margin. We have known the situation since we arrived but the numbers we have seen are even worse than we thought."
Barcelona have total debts of almost 1.2 billion euros, with more than half of that needing to be repaid in the short term.
"Leo wanted to stay and he's not happy," Laporta admitted of a player who has broken a slew of records in his 17 years at the club, not least netting 672 goals to earn what Laporta termed the club's "eternal gratitude."
