Micky van de Ven

The Netherlands have just hired Xavi but going back to Cruyffian football could actually force them to rethink two of their biggest stars: Frenkie de Jong and Virgil van Dijk. De Jong has enjoyed the freedom to dictate games for the Netherlands. But Xavi’s football is much more systematic. I actually wonder if Gravenberch could be the better 6, allowing Frenkie to play with more freedom higher up. Then there’s Van Dijk. If Xavi wants aggressive pressing + a high line, he’s asking Virgil to defend huge spaces. That makes Van de Ven’s recovery pace incredibly valuable. And the full-backs could be fascinating too. Frimpong/Dumfries providing the width means Gakpo, Xavi Simons, Brobbey can attack those inside spaces. But there’s one thing I worry about: Does Xavi actually have enough elite attacking talent? That was one of the lessons from Barcelona. A beautiful structure is great, but when it breaks down, you need world-class attackers to create something anyway. So this isn’t simply “Xavi will make the Netherlands play pretty football.” He’s potentially trying to take them from pragmatism back towards Cruyffian principles. And I’m really intrigued to see whether he can do it.