Over the years, there have been some sensational football teams in both the club and international games. However, it is not always the teams that win the most trophies that are the most talked about.
Some teams play such good football and have such an effect on the beautiful game that they are still talked about decades later. One of those teams is the Netherlands team that wowed at the 1974 World Cup.
The team of ‘Total Football’
The Dutch team of the 1974 World Cup, in particular, is associated with the ‘Total Football’ style of football, which was made popular in the modern game by former Ajax manager Rinus Michels.
His on-field orchestrator, Johan Cruyff, was the star of the show for the Netherlands team for so long. He had also played for Michels at both Ajax and, later, Barcelona. Cruyff and Michels are forever entangled because of their mutual respect and love of playing football in an entertaining way.
Though Michels is talked about as the architect of ‘Total Football’, the Oranje were not the first team to use the system. In fact, River Plate of the 1940s, Burnley under Jimmy Hogan in the 1950s and Hungary’s great ‘Mighty Magyars’ 1950s team all used a similar system to that used by the Oranje in the 1974 World Cup.
However, the presence of the stylish Cruyff and players such as another Dutch icon, Johan Neeskens, made the style even more exciting. Of course, the system wasn’t new to Michels when he took the reins of the Dutch national team, as he played a similar style when he turned Ajax into a European superpower.
A late appointment to the Oranje job
It seems incredible, considering the legacy he left with the Netherlands national team, that Michels only came in as the Oranje boss in the March before the World Cup.
Such a late appointment of a new head coach would usually have sent preparations for a major tournament into turmoil. However, the fact that the likes of Cruyff and Neeskens were such prominent figures in the Oranje squad made it a relative transition.
It wasn’t just only the star pair who were familiar with Michels work, as six of the 1974 World Cup squad were contracted to Ajax. One of the biggest tasks facing the new Oranje coach was dealing with Cruyff’s issues with his former Ajax teammates after his acrimonious exit from the Dutch giants in the summer of 1973.
The other was attempting to marry the Ajax contingent with the players from their fierce rivals, Feyenoord. The Rotterdam outfit had seven players in the squad, so it was a delicate balancing act.
Truly making a mark on the 1974 World Cup group stages
It wouldn’t be a Netherlands World Cup squad without a bit of tension, though. Cruyff supplied that. He wouldn’t wear the shirt made by Adidas, as he had a lucrative contract with rival Puma.
In the end, Cruyff wore a unique modified shirt, which contained two stripes instead of Adidas’ trademark three.
The row didn’t affect the team, as during that World Cup, the Oranje played some of the best football ever seen in the competition. The Netherlands opened their World Cup campaign with a 2-0 defeat over Uruguay.
Despite Cruyff being subject to some typically robust Uruguayan defending, The Barcelona star played a big part in the Oranje’s opening goal from Johnny Rep. The right-winger would score his brace to seal victory with a goal late in the game.
The Netherlands opening game gave a glimpse of what was yet to come from Michels’ team. They were frustrated by a goalless draw against Sweden in their second group game.
However, their final group game saw a return to form, as the Oranje recorded a 4-1 win over Bulgaria to seal the top spot in Group 3. For all their attacking verve, Michels’ team were also impressive in defence in the first group stage, conceding just once, which was a Ruud Krol own goal in the Bulgaria game.
The Oranje started the second group stage in sensational form, too, as they recorded a 4-0 win over Argentina, with Cruyff scoring a brace and Krol and Rep also getting on the scoresheet.
Their good form continued in the second group game, as they saw off East Germany courtesy of goals from Neeskens and Rob Rensenbrink. They finished the second stage with another 2-0 win, this time over Brazil, with goals from Neeskens and Cruyff.
The final was a step too far for the brilliant Oranje
The Netherlands finishing top of Group A in the second group stage saw them book their place in the final of the World Cup against East Germany.
Michel’s team made an exceptional start, as they passed the ball around 15 times, with the ball eventually ending up at the feet of Cruyff. He took on German defender Berti Vogts before being fouled by Uli Hoeness in the penalty area. Johan Neeskens made no mistake with the spot kick.
To say the opposition were stunned would be an understatement. The Germans hadn’t even touched the ball before it was in the back of their net.
“Maybe we were the real winners in the end. I think the world remembers our team more”
Despite 🏆#WorldCup defeat in 1974, the 🇳🇱Netherlands (@OnsOranje) were hailed as heroes back home
ARCHIVE📷👉 https://t.co/CXGHW3FNRE pic.twitter.com/ci55ktwfur
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) January 19, 2018
However, East Germany slowly worked their way back into the game, with the likes of Franz Beckenbauer, Uli Hoeness and Wolfgang Overath controlling the midfield battle.
The game was levelled up on 25 minutes, with Paul Breitner scoring from the penalty spot. Just before half-time, Gerd Muller pounced to put Germany ahead. The goal turned out to be the winning goal and Muller’s last international goal, as he retired from the national team after the tournament.
A brilliant team still remembered decades on
Unfortunately for Michels’ and the Oranje, unlike with Ajax, where his success was illustrated by the trophies he won, the stellar job he did with the Netherlands national team wasn’t rewarded with a trophy.
Michels’ first rein as the Oranje was short, as he left the position in July 1974. He had only managed the national team in ten games, with his only defeat being that fateful final.
He had three further spells as the national team boss later in his career, including guiding the Oranje to their only major international silverware, the European Championship in 1988.
The Netherlands returned to the World Cup final in 1978, not only without Michels but without Cruyff, too. Once again, they suffered a heartbreaking defeat, as the Oranje suffered a 3-1 defeat against Argentina.
The 1978 team didn’t quite have the same style or aura without Michels and Cruyff. It is a testament to just how big an impression the 1974 team had on the beautiful game that, over a half-century later, some still claim that they were one of the best teams in history despite never winning a trophy.