DEATH OF A STAR

You only have to look at past photos and film of Johan Cruyff to appreciate what a revolution he and his Dutch countymen brought to World football. I watched most of the 1974 World Cup through an Army Camp kitchen hatch. This excursion was one part of my "Stag Month" in late June and early July, working for just a week with the Cambridge University officers' corps at Warcop in Cumbria. I was a scivvy, serving them food, tidying away, washing up and generally waiting on hand and foot. I got paid and had board and lodging which paid for "stag beer". The World Cup was viewed through the hatch in the Officers' Mess during dinner and post dinner drinks in their bar. Of course, I was not allowed in. So I saw this kind of thing happening in Germany.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1k7DGqRF5g
BTW the poor defender being stitched up by his famous turn was Jan Olsson of Sweden.

Born in Amsterdam in 1947, Cruyff joined the Ajax Academy and played football and baseball. Obviously he quickly dropped baseball and his senior clubs included Ajax, where he made his debut in 1964,  Barcelona, Los Angeles Aztecs, Washington Diplomats, Levante, Ajax and then Feyenoord. This totalled 514 senior club appearances and 290 goals.

For Holland he played 48 times with 33 goals, during the time of "Totaalvoetbal" a style that he adopted along with Dutch coach Rinus Michaels, who influence much of Cruyff's career.

He later managed Ajax, Barcelona (establihsed their famous Academy on the model of Ajax's) and curiously the Catalonian national side, which typified his knowledge of world affairs and in this case his opposition to the Spanish dictatorship. He was intelligent and outspoken!

When the Dutch national team were sponsored by Adidas, he wore a shirt that only had two stripes on it, because his sponsor was Puma! He also wore the No 14 shirt in 1970, the first time that a player would wear a number outside the normal 1-11 and in 1966, his red card against Czechoslovakia in a friendly international was the first ever for a Dutchman. He was given a long "club" ban but not an international one.

His last attachment to a club was an advisor to Mexicans, Chivas Deportivo Guadalajara.

A heavy smoker, having had surgery in 1991 for lung cancer, he finally gave into it today. Suitably he will join "in space", an asteroid 14282 Cruijff, named after him by the International Astronomical Union. Only Josef Bican (a member of the Austrian Wunderteam) and Ferenc Puskas (The Galloping Magyar) have been privileged to have this recognition.

Died today aged 68.