The Blaugrana Oranje Era Begins.

The Xavi Hernández Oranje era kicks off today. For the first time since 1977, a foreigner will be in charge of the Netherlands national team. Hopefully the Catalan’s era will be as successful as the Dutch managers who have coached Xavi’s club, FC Barcelona.

• By Ibrahim Ayyub
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On August 12, 2026, the KNVB announced the hiring of Xavi Hernández as the new manager of the Oranje. Following the disappointing exit in World Cup 2026, a new manager was needed following the departure of Ronald Koeman. The usual gossip who could be the next Oranje manager ranged from the believable, Arne Slott, to the unbelievable, Roberto Martinez. It was a pleasant surprise for many, including yours truly, when Xavi was the one hired by the KNVB. For the first time since 1977, when the Austrian Ernst Happel was in charge of the Oranje, that a foreigner would be in charge of the Oranje.

It’s no secret that my love for football began in 1988 when I was wee lad who watched the Oranje win the 1988 European Championship. I never followed club football until after the 1994 World Cup. The club that got my attention was FC Barcelona, who had the likes of Romario and Stoichkov along with the Dutch legend Ronald Koeman and the Dutch icon, Johan Cruyff, was managing the side. Over the years, the Dutch influence on this club has been apparent.

FC Barcelona has a rich history since its inception back in 1899. The Dutch influence chapter of its rich history took place back in 1971 when Rinus Michels was hired to coach Barça and a few years later, Johan Cruyff was a major signing during that decade which saw the club end a 14 year wait for a league crown. Cruyff would then return to Barça, as a manager in 1988. That hiring would impact the club for decades where his “Dream Team” won four consecutive league titles and their first Champions League title and influence one of his players, Pep Guardiola who would go to accomplish great success as a manager at Barça, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. Pep would also play for Louis van Gaal, who took charge of Barça in 1997 and managed to lead the Blaugrana to back to back league titles, but also suffered disappointing results in Europe. It was van Gaal who also gave Xavi his Barça debut in 1988. Frank Rijkaard’s arrival in 2003 would see the Blaugrana win consecutive league titles and the club’s second Champions League title as Xavi blossomed under Rijkaard’s watch. The final Oranje manager was Ronaldo Koeman, who stepped down from the Oranje job to coach Barça in 2020, only to be replaced by Xavi in 2021.

It is ironic that Xavi is now replacing Koeman at another job. Furthermore, it’s the Barça guy taking over the Oranje and not the other way around. As a player, Xavi was a true legend of the game. As a manager, he has his merits and demerits.

Some of the positives that Xavi displayed when he managed Barça was his faith in the younger players and his lack of hesitation in dropping veterans. When Xavi took over Barça, he had no problem benching club legends, Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba. Both were instrumental in the Blaugrana’s success during the 2010s. However, when Xavi arrived, he made it clear to them that they no longer were starters. Xavi has already continued this trend by not calling up Memphis Depay and Wout Weghorst during this international break.

Xavi also gave young players their debuts when he managed Barça. You probably have heard of them; Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi, who have shined for club and country. Fermín López was also given his debut by Xavi and one can only hope that Xavi will give young Oranje players a shot to shine for their country. After suffering from Oranje managers relying on the old guard for far too long, an injection of youth is a breath of fresh air.

Nonetheless, Xavi is not flawless and there is a drawback in his appointment. Xavi is the only Barça manager in this century not to win back to back league titles. One major downside in Xavi is his lack of experience and tactical nuance. It is true that Xavi has won in his coaching stints in Qatar and at Barcelona. However, his supporting staff’s relative inexperience, along with Xavi’s was also an issue. Barça fans got to witness some great results, but also got to witness some horrendous performances, especially in Europe, where Plan B was basically whipping crosses into the box and praying for a header.

When things looked dire during Xavi’s tenure at Barça, I was hoping he’d bring in Pep Guardiola’s former assistant, Domènec Torrent, to help steady the ship. Unfortunately, that never materialized. Adding Ruud van Nistelrooy to his staff doesn’t feel like much of an upgrade, either. I would have loved to see an experienced figure in the mold of Henk ten Cate, Frank Rijkaard’s right-hand man during Barça’s mid-2000s resurgence, step into that tactical support role. That said, Xavi will never lack authority in the dressing room. He’s been in the players’ shoes, seen it all, and won it all and those players will listen to him.

After seeing Dutch managers take charge of Barça, it is now time for a Barça player to take charge of the Dutch. I am rooting for Xavi to do big things. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction and not another misstep.

The Barça Transfers That Almost Happened – Andrea Pirlo & Lorenzo Amoruso

When Pep almost brought the Italian star and how luck separated the club from player from Rangers.

It's that time of the year when we are bombarded with gossip that this player or that player is rumored to be pursued by Barça. Summer transfer window gives us, the Blaugrana faithful, something to discuss and ponder as we wait to see what moves our club will do. The number of players rumored to be joining Barça every summer could be enough to field three additional lineups. In the end, only a few of the rumors became reality while most dissipate into the wind. This series though will look back on the possible Barça transfers that almost happened. This chapter deals with the pursuit of the Italian players Andrea Pirlo and Lorenzo Amoruso.

The 2010 Joan Gamper Trophy match saw the return of Ronaldinho to the Camp Nou, as a member of the Milan team that played Barça that night. Obviously, it was special for the Camp Nou faithful to pay tribute to one of the biggest stars to ever play for the club. However, it was also a difficult night for the club as they were finalizing a deal to offload Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Milan. David Villa had been signed by Barça and they were in need to offload the Swede after he was deemed surplus to requirements by then manager Pep Guardiola.

While the media and the fans were wondering if Ibrahimovic had made his final appearance in the Blaugrana kit that night, another development was taking place elsewhere at the Camp Nou involving Guardiola and a certain Milan player. Rossoneri legend Andrea Pirlo had just finished changing, after witnessing his “Panenka” penalty effort thwarted by Barça keeper Pinto during the penalty shootout, when he was requested to meet with Guardiola. The meeting in in Guardiola’s office was a private recruiting pitch.

This ocurrence was so private that the rest of the world did not learn of this encounter till four years had passed, after Pirlo published his autobiography “I Think Therefore I Play.” This meeting lasted half an hour with Pirlo being greeted with red wine and Pep uttering “We need you here, Andrea.” Pep explained that he considered Pirlo the proper world class midfielder to rotate with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets. Pep also indicated that the club wanted to buy him now and had spoken to Milan but Barça’s offer was declined. Pep was also shrewd suggesting to Pirlo to apply some pressure on Milan by “forcing their hand as well."

Pep’s interest in Pirlo was not unexpected since they are midfielders that shared similar traits. Pep admired Pirlo and Pirlo idolized Pep. Both also played for Italian side Brescia, albeit not at the same time, along with Roberto Baggio, and when Carlo Mazzone was the manager. Pirlo could have been a superb choice to rotate with the likes of Xavi. Pirlo even admitted in his book that he would have crawled on all fours to join Barça. However, the deal failed to materialize and the club signed Javier Mascherano instead. Not a bad outcome in the slightest considering the Argentine's success at the club.

Barça were not his only suitors as Pirlo almost joined Chelsea in 2009, but Milan demanded too much in return, and there was also interest from Real Madrid. Yet, Milan were not interested in selling Pirlo to Barça and kept him for the 2010/2011 season while Barça would go on to win another Champions League. Ironically, that would be Pirlo’s final season with Milan as he only made 25 appearances for the club, the fewest since his first season with Milan in 2001/2002. The Italians decided not to renew his contract and he joined Juventus on a free transfer. One wonders why Barça also did not make a move for him back then.

Perhaps signing Cesc Fàbregas the following summer eliminated the need to sign Pirlo. Looking back at that move now, many would have preferred if Barça had signed Pirlo and not Cesc. Nonetheless, one has to wonder if signing Pirlo would have been a good move for Barça. Franco Colomba, Pirlo’s manager at Reggina, expressed his doubts to FourFourTwo that Pirlo would not have enjoyed sitting on the bench at Juventus if he could play elsewhere and that it would have created tension. Maybe Pep’s influence would have smoothed that issue.

Nevertheless, Pirlo still got to be admired by Barça fans, even though he was donning another team’s shirt. Following Barça’s Champions League final win over Juventus in 2015, the Barça fans in Berlin showed their appreciation towards the legendary player by chanting Pirlo’s name as he was in tears following his side’s loss. Perhaps he took some solace from that nice gesture that maybe also took some of the sting out of that defeat.

Coincidentally, Barça does not have a rich history of signing Italian players as the club only had three Italian players representing the club. All those players arrived in this century: Gianluca Zambrotta, who lasted two years, was signed in 2006; Francesco Coco, who joined the club on loan for the 2001/2002 season; and Demetrio Albertini, who joined the club on loan for the second half of the 2004/2005 season. All three would have forgettable spells with the club. Although Thiago Motta played for Barcelona’s first team from 2001 till 2007, he was a member of Brazil’s U-23 side before he got his first cap for Italy in 2011.

One Italian player that Barça allegedly were interested was Glasgow Rangers defender, Lorenzo Amoruso as he would captain his team to a domestic treble during the 1999/2000 season. At the time, there were reports that he was being pursued by Barça, Juventus and Bayern Munich. Amoruso even talked in an April 2000 interview with the Daily Record of Barça’s interest but was only willing to join if Rangers agreed to sell him. "It's true that these teams are behind me. Barcelona and Bayern Munich were looking for me, but I will only speak to them if Rangers say that Lorenzo is for sale.”

Back then, Josep Lluís Núñez was president of the club and the Blaugrana had just eliminated Chelsea in the Champions League quarterfinals. It was possible that the club, then managed by Louis van Gaal, were interested in signing the 29 year old Italian defender who likes to refer to himself in the third person. A month later, Barça were embarrassed by Valencia in the semifinals of the Champions League as both Josep Lluís Núñez and van Gaal left the club in the summer. A new president would have to be elected, and any rumors linked to the Italian disappeared. Amoruso would then claim that he turned down Barça to remain with Rangers.

Ultimately, one could say Pirlo would have been a superb addition that could have complemented this magnificent Barça midfield. He also could have been the first Italian signing that was not deemed a flop. Yet, the failed attempt in signing him did not hinder Barça as the club did go on to win two more Champions League titles since that Joan Gamper Trophy match. As for Amoruso, it’s probably for the best that he never joined just to be remembered as another member of the bad signings from the awful Gaspart era.

So Close Yet So Far Away.

Ibrahim Ayyub gives his opinion on Netherlands World Cup run which ended in the semi-finals.

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They came, they played and they were vanquished in the Semi-Finals. The Oranje gave us another memorable but yet heart breaking tournament. Sure, it was disappointing to see the Oranje fall short of winning a World Cup again, however, this was the team many thought wouldn’t even make it out of the group stage. We should enjoy the good, the bad, and the ugly of this tournament and keep our fingers crossed that Guus Hiddink can pick where van Gaal left off for Euro 2016.

It is somewhat bitter sweet to see Holland play in the 3rd place match of the World Cup. Van Gaal hates it and I don’t blame him. Playing this game is just a reminder that these players were one game away from another World Cup final. This had the makings of a Hollywood vigilante movie; Death Wish / Kill Bill style. Holland avenges every World Cup Final loss with wins in this World Cup against Spain for 2010, then Argentina for 1978 and then Germany for 1974. Well, the script had a major rewrite and Holland found themselves coming up short and playing for Bronze. They were so close yet so far away from the promised land after being knocked out by what else, a penalty shootout.

Ultimately, there will be “What Ifs” with this exit as there were in other exits. Why didn’t van Gaal drop van Persie and start with Huntelaar instead against Argentina? Why did he continue to stick with Sneijder even though he was not the same player that he was four years ago? Why did he not learn from other managers and not go with a defender early in a penalty shootout (Euro 2000)? Sadly, those and other lingering questions that will forever be in the back of the minds of many who were hoping for a better ending.

There were some positives from this World Cup. The biggest question mark for me was how strong would the back four do in this World Cup and they actually performed well. A new star was born thanks to Memphis Depay who is a finalist for the Best Young Player Award. Most importantly, the mood around this team is much better than it was at this time two years ago.

Here’s hoping Holland end this World Cup on a good note with a win to finish third and not exit this tournament with back to back losses. Here’s hoping that Holland can continue to take steps forward without any steps back. The first positive step would be to get over the pain of falling short and beat Brazil today.

Holland 2-1 Mexico; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.

With the recent passing away of the legendary actor, Eli Wallach, who played the role of Tuco Benedicto Pacífico Juan María Ramírez (The Ugly) in one of the greatest movies of all-time, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly. I decided to dedicate my latest column in his memory, by looking back on Holland’s win over Mexico that featured all three aspects. Holland will now face another CONCACAF opponent, Costa Rica.

• By Ibrahim Ayyub
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The Good

Holland’s never quit spirit. Kuyt was the perfect example of a player who did everything that was asked of him to do on the pitch. Sneijder, even though he continued to struggle and failed to step up, as noted by Adrian Bucher on this website not too long ago, also didn’t sulk or hang his head low and kept fighting and scored the equalizer. Mexico eased up after they went up a goal and Holland were determined to keep looking for that equalizer which they deservedly got. Depay and Huntelaar coming off the bench were great moves by van Gaal. Huntelaar scoring on a penalty, after missing his last few with Schalke, under such pressure was great and also a boost for this team. After so many expected a group exit for the Oranje, a return to the Semi-Finals seems very possible.

The Bad

Holland’s performance in the first 60 minutes was something to forget. De Jong’s injury hurt the midfield, as Blind struggled to fill in that role while the fullbacks were getting exposed constantly by Mexico. Cillessen looked shaky at times while Blind and Vlaar could have done more to block Giovanni Dos Santos’s effort that resulted in a goal. Perhaps the heat played a part in it but they cannot afford to start another match like this again. Sneijder without De Jong and Depay struggles and hopefully Depay can start besides Sneijder, but at whose expense in the starting lineup? Can Depay replace De Jong even though he is not as defensive savvy or will van Gaal prefer to go total football against Costa Rica?

The Ugly

The heat was one of the ugliest factors in this game for both, the players and the spectators in attendance. Good thing FIFA allows water breaks, which van Gaal used to his advantage by giving Sneijder a chat about tactical changes and rightfully so. It’s foolish to believe managers can’t talk to their players during these water breaks. What next? Players can’t talk amongst one another as if they’re in school?

Robben’s diving along with his subsequent confusing apology was not needed. We all know Robben likes to make a meal out of most tackles and Rafa Marquez did foul him for that penalty. Robben’s dive in the second half when he intentionally tripped over Layun’s legs was embarrassing and not needed. Obviously, he should have been awarded a penalty in the first half and perhaps his reputation played a role in the referee not to point to the spot. The Tale of The Boy Who Cried Wolf comes to mind and I wouldn’t be surprised if referees doubt if he is being fouled or diving. I also wouldn’t be surprised if the referee gave the Robben penalty either after he realized he should have given one in the first half. Sooner or later, a referee will book him and the last thing we need is a player like Robben to be sent off, like Gheorghe Hagi against Italy in Euro 2000, in a knock out game. We need our best players on the pitch. His apology afterwards was confusing and just prolonged the controversy even more.

Costa Rica has impressed at this World Cup by advancing from a group that featured three former World Cup champions. Holland will be playing a later kick off when they face Costa Rica so perhaps the heat won’t be a factor in this matchup. However, Holland better avoid another Good, Bad and Ugly performance against Costa Rica if they want to book a ticket to the Semi-Finals where they await the winner of Argentina-Belgium.

So far, So Good Oranje.

Should Netherlands adapt a new system going forward in the World Cup? Ibrahim Ayyub gives his opinion on the campaign so far.

Holland defied the odds by making it to the knock out stages as group leaders when many thought they would be flying home after the group stages. Holland crushed Spain, came back to beat Australia after suffering a brief scare, and controlled Chile before scoring a late win. During these matches, Coach Louis van Gaal has switched formations and style of play yet some questions still linger with all these positive results.

Can Holland afford to keep playing conservative the rest of the way? It helped that Holland had the advantage of sitting back against a Chile side that needed to win to finish first. However, the knockout stage is a different creature. This style of play that Holland is using is great when they are playing with a lead but what would happen if Holland were to find themselves a goal down?

Holland were put to the challenge when they found themselves leaving the pitch at halftime against Spain and Australia with the score tied 1-1 in the first two matches of this World Cup. I was very curious to see how they would respond. Spain’s back four were overwhelmed and paid the price for their costly errors. Australia though was another story as Holland suddenly found themselves trailing Australia 1-2 after a dubious handball penalty was given early into the second half. It’s hard to counter attack against a team that now has the lead and plans on sitting back and Holland would have to fight their way back and play a different style of football.

Eventually, Holland proved that they do have a Plan B and goals from Robin van Persie and Memphis Depay sealed the come from behind win. The Chile victory was not easy on the eyes but the main objective was reached; finish first in the group table. They will now face Mexico, another team that plays it safe and doesn’t try to get caught with too many players attacking. Thus, whoever scores first will be relying on the other team being a more adventurous for them to set up the counter attacks.

In my opinion, Holland needs to develop a style where they can they dictate the tempo and be in control. Relying on counter attacks is not a fool proof plan. You can’t rely on scoring through long ball home-runs, especially if you are one play away from a red card and are forced to play down a man the rest of the game as we saw in the Italy loss to Uruguay. The last two games saw Memphis Depay come off the bench and give the team a boost. Perhaps van Gaal should consider playing the young man besides Wesley Sneijder in the midfield as Holland begins the second part of their journey in the knock out stage. However, this is van Gaal that we are talking about so who knows what he has in store next.

* Originally published on http://www.football-oranje.com/

Oranje disgrace themselves at Euro 2012.

Well, it’s that time again where Holland break my heart and disappoint me following another international tournament. Usually that would be the case, but this summer, instead of feeling gutted or sad at watching my beloved Oranje fall short of winning a cup again since 1988, I felt disgusted, revolted and numb. What was supposed to be the tournament for Holland to follow up from their impressive World Cup two years ago became the nightmare that imploded all the hopes and dreams of success.

Holland’s three losses in the group stage were not only shocking; they were also demoralizing. Holland’s track record of advancing to the knock out stages since the 1980 European Championship finally came to an end this summer. This was the first time that Holland failed to win a group stage match for the first time in their history in this tournament.

What was the cause for this calamity? Was it the Oranje players’ egos ugly hear that we have been accustomed to seeing from the past? Was it a manager who lost control and failed to strengthen obvious weaknesses stemming from 2010? Was it a case of lack of luck regarding being picked in the group of death? All of the above would be the correct answer.

Group of Death

Obviously being in the group of death of the umpteenth time didn’t help Holland in Euro 2012. However, they have been in a group of death for the umpteenth time. They encountered similar groups in the past and not in the ancient past. In Euro 2000, they were in a group with then World Cup champions France, Denmark and the Czech Republic. In Euro 2004, they were in a group with Germany, Latvia and Czech Republic again. World Cup 2006 had Holland grouped with Argentina, Serbia and Ivory Coast and just four years ago, they were grouped with Romania, Italy and France. Every single time, Holland managed to make it of their group. So this excuse on its own doesn’t hold much merit.

Players are also to blame.

After the final whistle blew in their group match against Portugal, reports started coming out about the team being divided with egos being the driving wedge between teammates. There was talk that there was a lack of respect between players and manager and between the players themselves. There was a divided group between the Robin van Persie camp and Wesley Sniejder camp. Allegedly one group wanted to play football a certain way and another group wanted to play a different style of football. 

When a sad and disappointed Gregory van Der Weil spoke to the media following Holland’s elimination, he mentioned how his teammates shunned him on the pitch  and did not allow him to play to his strengths and that his relationship with his teammates was disastrous. Additionally, it was alleged that a member of the Oranje staff told Huntelaar to zip it or face getting thrown out of the team's hotel.

Unfortunately for all of us Oranje fans, the team’s amazing run to the 2010 World Cup final affected the players’ psyche. I guess the players forgot that they lost that final to Spain but their performance in the qualifiers leading up to Euro 2012 showed us that this team was confident and courageous. However, when Euro 2012 kicked off, the old habit of players’ egos getting in the way of the team reared its ugly head again.

What makes this more saddening is that eventual champions, Spain, faced similar divisions in their team. Yet, the Barça and Madrid players set their differences aside and thought of only one thing; representing their country as one united team. Which begs the question, why couldn’t the Oranje players do the same thing? Was it poor leadership by the veteran leaders? Why didn’t the manager come in and nip this issue in the bud?

Manager is also to blame.

Speaking of the manager, some of the blame has to be pointed at him. He dropped the ball in a major way when he obviously lost control and respect of some of his players. That happens to some of the best of them. However, he could have also taken control and made all the players realize that the wrong of their ways. Del Bosque had no problem making the Spanish players patch things up for the good of the team and their country. Bert van Marwijk could have tried the same.

However, he fouled things up with his tactics and lineups. I never considered van Persie as an important player for the Oranje. If people think Messi underachieved for Argentina, then what do you say about van Persie’s performances for Holland? He played hurt in World Cup 2010 and after a superb season for Arsenal, he could not carry that form for Holland last month.

I was a firm believer that Huntelaar should have started ahead of van Persie in Euro 2012. Huntelaar started the majority of the qualifiers and did a superb job on scoring a huge tally of goals for the Oranje. It seemed like the team had a perfect system. Nevertheless, the manager opted to use van Persie over Huntelaar for the first two games and when he started both in the final group match against Portugal; it allowed Holland to suffer defensively.

Speaking of suffering defensively, it was no secret that Holland needed help in the back four prior to the start of World Cup 2010. The manager had had two years to improve the back line.  Holland was in dire need of strong center backs and a left full back. Sadly, he opted to experiment and play players out of position. As they say, the rest is history. As journalist Ernst Bouwes said, Roel Brouwers of Borussia Mönchengladbach was voted, alongside Mats Hummels as center backs in the Kicker XI of the Season, yet he was not even selected.

It didn’t take long for the KNVB to fire van Marwijk. Even though he was the first manager to guide the country to a final for the first time since Rinus Michels, he completely lost the plot two years later. One poll had a majority of 57% voters believing that he should be removed as manager while 43% believe in keeping him for the upcoming World Cup in Brazil. Unfortunately, the sport of football can be a cruel one where you are more remembered for your most recent disaster than you are remembered for your great achievements, i.e., Frank Rijkaard with FC Barcelona.

Of course, Rijkaard’s was among the many names thrown out by the media as possible replacements to manage Holland along with Ronald Koeman, Ruud Gullit, Frank de Boer, Guus Hiddink, Louis van Gaal, Co and Adriaanse.  Frank de Boer seems destined to be the next Oranje manager but that is only after he has completed his project with Ajax Amsterdam. He seems to have the pedigree to do it and if he can have the likes of Bergkamp, Kim Jonk and twin brother Ronald de Boer on his staff, then hopefully the 90’s stars can show the current and future Oranje players on how it can go all wrong when a team is divided and how to overcome those issues to become a great team again.

Sadly, the KNVB opted to give the job to Louis van Gaal again. I thought he was only suited for club football and disagree with this appointment.  The pain of Holland failing to qualify for the 2002 World Cup still stings to this day and I am not sure he is the right man for the job. How can you trust a manager who allows someone like Lucio to walk away and opt to start Demichelis instead?

A lot can happen in two years. Euro 2012 is living proof of how things can go sour real quick. Let’s hope the Oranje players learned a stern lesson from this humiliating experience and regroup for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. But first things first, let’s hope van Gaal can steer them to qualification first and not suffer a repeat of the same fate that he experienced in the run up to the 2002 World Cup.

Hup Holland as always.